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http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/12173061p-13043130c.html
Rockets cool off, so Kings take win
They take charge after Chris Webber's three-pointer ties the score with 1.3 seconds left in regulation, forcing overtime.
By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, January 29, 2005
HOUSTON - Six different ways of trying to defend a pick-and-roll play involving the Houston Rockets' Tracy McGrady and Scott Padgett didn't work for Rick Adelman, so the Kings' coach depended on the law of averages to work in his favor.
Finally, it did when Padgett missed on his seventh three-point attempt, opening the way midway through overtime for the Kings to sneak out of Toyota Center with a 117-111 victory over the Rockets on Friday night.
Padgett, who hadn't shot the ball well against the Kings during stints with the Utah Jazz and Houston, made his first six three-point attempts and finished 8 of 9 from the field (6 of 7 on threes) for a career-high 22 points. The victim on many of those pick-and-rolls was Chris Webber.
However, Webber gave the Kings an opportunity to take a game they had controlled into overtime by hitting a three-pointer with 1.3 seconds left to tie the score at 103.
McGrady, who after the game admitted he had erred by not following Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy's instructions to foul, missed a jumper from the corner at the end of regulation.
Webber, who tied McGrady for game-high scoring honors with 30 points and told his team it was going to win throughout the timeout preceding his game-tying three-pointer, places a major emphasis on making sure players returning to face their former teams get victories. Friday night's guy was Cuttino Mobley, who played his first game in Houston since being traded by the Rockets to the Orlando Magic last summer, then to the Kings a couple of weeks ago.
"I kept telling the team we were going to go into overtime," Webber said of the timeout taken with 4.7 seconds left in the fourth quarter. "I said either Mike (Bibby) was going to hit it or Cat was going to hit it. And if one them didn't hit, I damned sure was going to hit it."
After the timeout, Bibby inbounded from the left sideline to Webber, then curled around him to take a handoff. But Webber said he noticed McGrady, who was guarding him, had shaded toward Bibby.
"Mike told me if he passed me the ball and I didn't give it back to shoot it," said Webber, who had nine rebounds, six assists, three steals and just one turnover while doing a solid job defending 7-foot-6 Yao Ming. "And I thought they were going to foul me. Tracy jumped, and I saw his man following, so he couldn't foul me. So I just tried to (spin) away and shoot it.
"And I felt comfortable with that. I'm definitely fortunate to make it, but I feel comfortable taking that shot."
McGrady felt terrible after the game.
"It was all my fault," said McGrady, who also had a season-high 12 assists. "I let my team down. We were up three, and coach told us in the huddle to foul. And when we got a chance to, I didn't foul, and (Webber) knocked down a big shot."
It wasn't as if others didn't play a huge role in the Kings' victory. Bibby had a season-high 14 assists to go with 28 points, including a backbreaking jumper with 31.6 seconds left in overtime to give the Kings a 113-108 lead. And Mobley, who left the game briefly in the fourth quarter to have a pulled groin muscle taped, missed each of his three shots in that period but buried two three-pointers during overtime, including one with 2:49 left that put the Kings ahead for good.
"That was a huge three Chris hit," said Mobley, who made 4 of 8 three-point attempts en route to 24 points. "I love my teammates. They do a whole lot." Said Adelman: "After playing (Thursday night in San Antonio) and Houston making almost every shot it threw up, it was something. But our guys persevered. And you figure the law of averages were in our favor."
Rockets cool off, so Kings take win
They take charge after Chris Webber's three-pointer ties the score with 1.3 seconds left in regulation, forcing overtime.
By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, January 29, 2005
HOUSTON - Six different ways of trying to defend a pick-and-roll play involving the Houston Rockets' Tracy McGrady and Scott Padgett didn't work for Rick Adelman, so the Kings' coach depended on the law of averages to work in his favor.
Finally, it did when Padgett missed on his seventh three-point attempt, opening the way midway through overtime for the Kings to sneak out of Toyota Center with a 117-111 victory over the Rockets on Friday night.
Padgett, who hadn't shot the ball well against the Kings during stints with the Utah Jazz and Houston, made his first six three-point attempts and finished 8 of 9 from the field (6 of 7 on threes) for a career-high 22 points. The victim on many of those pick-and-rolls was Chris Webber.
However, Webber gave the Kings an opportunity to take a game they had controlled into overtime by hitting a three-pointer with 1.3 seconds left to tie the score at 103.
McGrady, who after the game admitted he had erred by not following Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy's instructions to foul, missed a jumper from the corner at the end of regulation.
Webber, who tied McGrady for game-high scoring honors with 30 points and told his team it was going to win throughout the timeout preceding his game-tying three-pointer, places a major emphasis on making sure players returning to face their former teams get victories. Friday night's guy was Cuttino Mobley, who played his first game in Houston since being traded by the Rockets to the Orlando Magic last summer, then to the Kings a couple of weeks ago.
"I kept telling the team we were going to go into overtime," Webber said of the timeout taken with 4.7 seconds left in the fourth quarter. "I said either Mike (Bibby) was going to hit it or Cat was going to hit it. And if one them didn't hit, I damned sure was going to hit it."
After the timeout, Bibby inbounded from the left sideline to Webber, then curled around him to take a handoff. But Webber said he noticed McGrady, who was guarding him, had shaded toward Bibby.
"Mike told me if he passed me the ball and I didn't give it back to shoot it," said Webber, who had nine rebounds, six assists, three steals and just one turnover while doing a solid job defending 7-foot-6 Yao Ming. "And I thought they were going to foul me. Tracy jumped, and I saw his man following, so he couldn't foul me. So I just tried to (spin) away and shoot it.
"And I felt comfortable with that. I'm definitely fortunate to make it, but I feel comfortable taking that shot."
McGrady felt terrible after the game.
"It was all my fault," said McGrady, who also had a season-high 12 assists. "I let my team down. We were up three, and coach told us in the huddle to foul. And when we got a chance to, I didn't foul, and (Webber) knocked down a big shot."
It wasn't as if others didn't play a huge role in the Kings' victory. Bibby had a season-high 14 assists to go with 28 points, including a backbreaking jumper with 31.6 seconds left in overtime to give the Kings a 113-108 lead. And Mobley, who left the game briefly in the fourth quarter to have a pulled groin muscle taped, missed each of his three shots in that period but buried two three-pointers during overtime, including one with 2:49 left that put the Kings ahead for good.
"That was a huge three Chris hit," said Mobley, who made 4 of 8 three-point attempts en route to 24 points. "I love my teammates. They do a whole lot." Said Adelman: "After playing (Thursday night in San Antonio) and Houston making almost every shot it threw up, it was something. But our guys persevered. And you figure the law of averages were in our favor."
