Houston Rockets Offensive Droughts Have Cost Them Two Games

The Houston Rockets have had long stretches where their offense disappears. Those droughts have happened in the last two losses at the worst possible time.

Dec 29, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka (left) leaves the court after being ejected against the Miami Heat during the fourth quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images / Erik Williams-Imagn Images

The Houston Rockets came into Sunday night's game wanted to get the bad taste of Friday's loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves out of their mouths. The Rockets led by 12 points with a little over three minutes left before being outscored 15-2 and losing the game.

After the game, the Rockets talked about stopping being aggressive on offense and defense. They couldn't get stops, and there was almost no ball or player movement on the offensive end. Even with the Rocket's 21-11 record, there have been multiple moments throughout the season where the offense has completely disappeared.

Having offensive lulls in the first three quarters, where you go three, four, or five minutes without scoring, is bad enough, but when it happens in the fourth quarter, it really stands out. That has been the case in the last two games, and the main reason both have resulted in losses.

As mentioned earlier the Rockets were outscored 15-2 to end Friday's game and loss a heartbreaker to the Timberwolves. Houston was in another tight game Sunday night and had the lead in the fourth quarter.

After a Fred VanVleet layup the Rockets led 92-85 with 8:10 left in the game. That is when the Rockets offense disappeared as the Heat would end the game on a 19-8 run. The Rockets made only three baskets the last eight minutes and went almost six minutes without a made basket.

Two of those baskets came after the game was almost decided in the last minute and the Rockets only scored 18 total points in the fourth quarter. The Rocket's two leading players, Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green combined for two points in the fourth quarter, with both coming from the free-throw line

The Rockets must improve their fourth quarter scoring especially in the clutch because this won't be their last close game of the season.

The Rockets are still in third place, but with each loss, they are getting closer to the seventh seed, which means winning a play-in game. The Western Conference will be a tight race the entire season, so each loss is magnified.

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