Yao Ming became forceful at the finish and Tracy McGrady scored 14 points in the last eight minutes, rallying Houston past Washington 103-91 on Friday, with both stars showing no signs of nagging injuries.
McGrady’s hot shooting combined with a powerful slam dunk and key jumper by Yao sparked a 27-6 Houston run over the final 8 minutes, 30 seconds, as the Rockets scored the last 13 points for the win.
“We had a very good eight minutes in the fourth quarter,” Yao said. “I’m not happy about the first three quarters. I’m not happy about how we played. It was not too late for us to wake up in the fourth quarter. Sometimes it’s too late. But not tonight.”
The 28-year-old Chinese center missed Wednesday’s loss to Dallas with a sore left foot, the same foot he broke to miss the last 26 games of last season, but the 2.26m superstar said it was “no problem” now.
Yao dominated Wizards rookie center JaVale McGee, forcing two-man coverage from Washington that left McGrady open outside in the closing minutes.
“Yao got really aggressive inside,” Rockets coach Rick Adelman said. “We always want him to get aggressive. Tonight it turned the game around for us. He took it right at [McGee] and there was nothing he could do. Somebody had to cover and Tracy got the hot hand.”
McGrady, nursing a sore left knee, hit five-of-six shots in his streak, four of them three-pointers, to finish with 20 points.
“When we really needed a shot he hit it and that pumped us up emotionally,” Yao said.
Yao added 18 points, while Ron Artest had 14, but reserves Aaron Brooks, with 18 points, and Carl Landry, who scored 14 of his 19 in the second quarter, kept the Rockets within reach after they fell behind 29-17 after the first quarter.
“It could have been a disaster,” Adelman said. “I don’t know what happened. Suddenly we started making every shot. We had a nice fourth quarter, but we have to find a way to play 48 minutes.”
Antawn Jamison led Washington with 27 points and 10 rebounds, hitting 11 points in the third quarter to give the hosts a 77-70 lead entering the fourth.
“In the fourth quarter, we had seen enough,” Yao said. “We didn’t want that to happen again.”
The Wizards, who fell to 1-9, hit only seven-of-21 shots in the fourth quarter and failed to score in the final 4 minutes, 15 seconds.
“Yao got aggressive and the outside shooters started hitting,” McGrady said. “We’re a lock-down defensive team. When we need big stops we have the guys who can make it happen.”
The Rockets, 8-5, had Yao on the court for 33 minutes. That’s about how long Adelman would like to see his top scorer and rebounder on the court until the foot pain Yao felt in a Monday win over Oklahoma City is a more distant memory.
Friday’s other NBA results:
• Orlando 100, Indiana 98 OT
• Philadelphia 89, LA Clippers 88
• Atlanta 88, Charlotte 83
• New Jersey 129, Toronto 127 OT
• Boston 95, Minnesota 78
• San Antonio 119, Utah 94
• Milwaukee 104, New York 87
• Dallas 91, Memphis 76
• New Orleans 105, Oklahoma 80
• Portland 117, Sacramento 96
• Chicago 115, Golden State 110
• LA Lakers 104, Denver 90
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