Harden leads Rockets in rout of Spurs

James Harden led the team against the Thunder, averaging 33.2 points, 6.4 rebounds and 7 assists per game.

“It’s just another play in the books for me and Bron”, he said.

“We just gotta do a better job of making things hard for these guys”.

All of these areas where the Spurs should have had an advantage got flipped upside down, and all the areas they were going to lose, they lost, too.

James Harden and Clint Capela both double-doubled-Harden went for 20 points, 14 assists and 4 steals, and Capela scored 20 points and grabbed 13 boards-while Trevor Ariza scored 25 points on 50 percent shooting and grabbed four rebounds.

The Spurs were never in the game, an unusual situation for the five-time National Basketball Association champions who were expected to dominate on their home court on Monday. The Spurs may have had the most efficient defense in the league this past regular season, but Houston cut through them without resistance.

“We don’t want to, but I feel if we have to, I think we’re capable”, said Spurs guard Danny Green, who will be among those trying to slow Harden.

Now I doubt the Rockets will duplicate the same performance tomorrow night but I’m sure they’ll bring the same intensity. When they weren’t running, it was a heavy – and I mean heavy – dose of pick-and-rolls that involved LaMarcus Aldridge, David Lee and Pau Gasol.

In that series, Olajuwon overmatched Robinson after the San Antonio center had won the MVP trophy. The Rockets jumped out to a big lead immediately, led by 30 at halftime, and held the Spurs to just four measly points in the eight minutes on either side of the halfway point. Offensively, Leonard really flourished in the Spurs’ first-round triumph over the Grizzlies and his game has developed everywhere from the lane to the three-point line.

The Spurs’ 6-foot-7 defensive anchor averaged 28.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists against the Rockets.

It’s especially promising for the Rockets’ identity that they’ve continued to put up shots even though they haven’t been falling.

The Spurs played a very uncharacteristic Game 1, probably the worse they’ve played all season. That’s a little bit of salve for this Thunder season. To win this series, they need to continue to push the pace and make the Spurs uncomfortable. Defensively, the Rockets are yielding 109.6 points per game against the opposing teams.

Story line: Houston goes from the spectacular Russell Westbrook to the sturdy Spurs in the first postseason matchup between the division and Texas rivals since 1995.

Rockets at Spurs, Houston leads 1-0. “They’ll respond”, coach Mike D’Antoni said. Leonard has scored in double figures in 27 straight playoff games.

The Raptors, who fell to 1-12 in playoff series openers, were led by 20 points from Kyle Lowry and 19 from DeMar DeRozan. Patty Mills has made at least two 3-pointers in 24 postseason games, second most in franchise history to Manu Ginobili’s 62. Remember when I said the offense got stopped in its tracks?

The game got testy in the second half with a pair of ejections. Things got heated at the end of the third quarter between Houston center Nene and San Antonio center Dewayne Dedmon. “It’s pretty loud in there”, Harden said. Dedmon was shooting free throws early in the fourth quarter, and Bev yapped at him enough to draw some sort of (likely vulgar) response.

The Spurs will need to corral James Harden while the Rockets will need to ground Kawhi Leonard.

Kawhi Leonard was really the only Spurs starter to show up.

The five-time All-Star, who joined San Antonio two summers ago after spending his first nine seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers, is supposed to utilize his scoring prowess – particularly from mid-range – to be the No. 2 option behind MVP candidate Kawhi Leonard.