LOS ANGELES, 27 January 2004 — With Magic’s All-Star guard Steve Francis having one of his worst games, the Rockets’ Yao Ming picked up the slack with his best NBA-effort.
Yao had a career-high 37 points and 10 rebounds to lead the visiting Houston Rockets past the Orlando Magic 99-87 on Sunday for their sixth win in the last seven games.
“I had a lot of self-confidence today,” said Yao, who made 15-of-23 field goals and all seven free throws.
“I didn’t want to be passive and let them come to defend me. I wanted to attack them.”
Houston’s Maurice Taylor scored 20 points off the bench but Francis finished with just seven points — 10 below his team-leading average — on just three-of-11 shooting.
Tracy McGrady led Orlando with 31 points but went scoreless in the fourth quarter.
“Every time I answered, Yao answered,” McGrady said.
“It didn’t matter. They’d just come down the court and do the same thing. Even Shaq can’t stop him from getting position on the court. He’s a beast.”
Yao stood tallest in the third quarter, tallying 21 points as Houston’s guards fed him in a mismatch over his much smaller defenders.
“They didn’t show any signs of double-teaming, so we just kept running the same two or three plays to get him the ball,” teammate Jim Jackson said.
“Yao is not in the same class as Shaq (O’Neal) yet, but he is dominant enough that he demands the double-team.”
“Our game plan was to double-team Yao on the dribble but we were late getting there,” Magic coach Johnny Davis said.
“The guy’s 7-6 and our guys are 6-9, 6-10, so he shot over the top even when we got the double-team. I think he’s really finding his comfort level with the NBA. Tonight, he was just tough to stop, especially one-on-one where he’s almost impossible to stop.”
The Magic trailed 75-71 entering the final period but Taylor scored 10 consecutive points in a three-minute span that gave the Rockets an 87-78 cushion with 7:55 left in the game. Yao’s final basket — a jumper — with 3:16 to go increased the lead to 97-83.
Mavericks 108 Kings 99
Michael Finley scored 23 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 1:58 remaining, to spark a decisive 11-2 game-ending run as the Mavericks stretched their season-high winning streak to eight games.
Steve Nash had 21 points and a season-best 13 assists, while Dirk Nowitzki collected 20 points and 12 rebounds in Dallas’ longest streak since starting the 2002-003 campaign at 14-0.
Peja Stojakovic had 24 points and 10 rebounds, while Doug Christie scored 23 points for 30-12 Sacramento, which dropped into a tie with Minnesota atop the Western Conference standings following its second straight road loss.
Timberwolves 99 Suns 95
Sam Cassell scored 14 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter, leading the Timberwolves to their 11th consecutive home victory.
Kevin Garnett had 19 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists in Minnesota’s 21st victory in the last 25 games. Shawn Marion had 31 points and 13 rebounds in the Suns’ third straight setback.
Grizzlies 106 Nuggets 88
Bonzi Wells scored 17 points and the red-hot Grizzlies dominated the second half to stretch their franchise-record winning streak to eight games.
Pau Gasol and Stromile Swift added 15 points apiece as Memphis shot 26-for-37 after the break, and outscored Denver 64-39 en route to its seventh straight home win.
Carmelo Anthony led Denver with 25 points.
Nets 110 Celtics 91
Richard Jefferson scored 25 points while Kenyon Martin had 20 points and 15 rebounds, helping the host Nets stop a season-high five game slump. Jason Kidd contributed 10 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds for the two-time defending Eastern Conference champions. Ricky Davis had 26 points for Boston, which had its modest two-game winning streak snapped.
Bulls 96 Raptors 89
Jamal Crawford scored 27 points and the Bulls broke a six-game losing streak.
Jalen Rose had 22 points against his former team in visiting Toronto’s fifth straight loss.
Hawks 91 Pistons 82
Jason Terry scored 22 points and Stephen Jackson added 21, helping the Hawks snap the Pistons’ nine-game home winning streak.
Reserve Corliss Williamson matched a season-high with 20 points while Ben Wallace collected 14 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks in Detroit’s third straight loss since tying a franchise-best 13-game winning streak.
