The Rockets reversed with 4 points in overtime and ranked third after 4 consecutive victories. Durant scored 35+5+6 and Shen Jing broke out again.

In the Rockets home arena, before the game, both teams were missing 8 players - the Magic were missing Suggs and Benqueiro, and the Rockets were also missing VanVleet, Yinson, and Fan. I thought it was a rookie game where the remaining teams were pecking each other. , as the result continued, the cheers of the home fans became less and less confident: as soon as the halftime whistle sounded, the score of 46:55 was shown on the big screen. The Rockets were suppressed by the Magic for two whole quarters, without even a hint of counterattack. However, in the second half, the Rockets, led by Durant, reversed the Magic 117:113 in overtime and won their fourth consecutive victory.

At 11 minutes and 20 seconds into the game, Shen Jing squeezed the defense under the basket and scored two points, which was a good start for the home team. But this "good start" only lasted 14 seconds - the Magic's Carter received a pass from Wagner, stood outside the three-point line and raised his hand to shoot. The ball swished through the net, directly killing the Rockets' morale. In the next few minutes, the Magic seemed to press the "accelerator button": at 8 minutes and 34 seconds, Wagner scored a free throw, and then turned around and fed Bane a layup; Silva followed and caught the ball and scored two points; in the end, Wagner took two more steps and scored a three-pointer against the defense - this 8:0 offensive was like a flood, directly opening the point difference to double digits. At the end of the first quarter, the Magic led 30:23. Except for Durant, who scored 9 points (incidentally, 2 rebounds and 2 assists), Shen Jing scored 6 points, and Smith scored 4 points. The rest of the Rockets looked like they didn't have a shooting bag, just standing on the court as a backdrop.

Looking at the Magic side, Wagner seemed to be on stimulants. He scored 13 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists in a single quarter. When the ball came to his hands, he would either score or provide an assist. Carter scored 8 points and Silva scored 5 points. The cooperation of the three of them was as smooth as if they had been rehearsed in advance. Compared with the Rockets' scene of "one person playing against four people watching", it was simply a dimensionality reduction attack.

At the beginning of the second quarter, Rockets substitute Sheppard received a pass from Shen Jing and scored a three-pointer. The home fans had just shouted "Good shot" for a while, and Magic's Isaac immediately returned the three-pointer - without even giving him a chance to breathe. Durant really worked hard in this quarter, going back and forth with breakthroughs and jump shots. He scored a total of 15 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists in the half, but the ball in his hands seemed to be greased. He made 4 mistakes: once the ball was passed out of bounds during a fast break, and another time he was intercepted in a singles, his good offensive rhythm was completely disrupted by him. The coach on the sidelines was so angry that he stamped his feet, but except for Durant, no one in the starting lineup could score, so he had no choice but to let him continue playing. By the end of the second quarter, the Magic had stabilized the point difference at 55:46. The Rockets' bench gathered around to catch their breath, but the starters all lowered their heads - in this half, they relied entirely on the bench to keep them from being beaten.

At the end of halftime, the Rockets bench suddenly exploded: Sheppard scored 10 points and 5 rebounds in 12 minutes. He not only could shoot three-pointers but also grabbed rebounds. His plus-minus value was +7, the only positive number in the team; Holiday even more Ruthless, he scored 7 points in less than 8 minutes. He came off the bench and directly pushed the Magic bench to the ground, with a plus-minus value of +10. Adams was not idle either, grabbing 6 rebounds and bolstering the Rockets' rebounding advantage (27:20).

But the starter here is Zhen La Kua: Shen Jing scored 8 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists. The statistics are not bad, but the 2 turnovers were like a joke. One time he directly passed the ball to the opponent during support; Smith Jr. had 4 points and 2 rebounds. It was as if he was invisible on both offense and defense. The opponent broke through him and connected. They were too lazy to stretch; Amen grabbed 6 rebounds, but only scored 2 points. His finishing at the basket was like throwing the ball out of the frame; the most outrageous thing was Okogie, who had 0 points and 1 rebound in 14 minutes, with a plus-minus value of -19. He was a "humanoid hole" when he stood on the court, and the opponent's ball was passed to him accurately.

Looking at the statistics at halftime, you can see how much the Rockets are doing: the field goal percentage is 38%, which is a lot lower than the Magic's 49%; there are only 6 assists, a fraction of the Magic; there are 6 turnovers, twice as many as the Magic. The only thing that can be seen is that there are 7 more rebounds and the free throw percentage is 81%. But what's the use of just grabbing rebounds without scoring, and having accurate free throws but no chance to take them?

It would not be an exaggeration to say that the Magic's half was a "team basketball textbook." Wagner, who started, scored 16 points in 18 minutes, scoring and passing, with a plus-minus of +17, and he never wasted the ball in his hands; Silva scored 12 points in 16 minutes and had 2 steals.

The substitutes did not miss the mark: Blake provided 4 assists in 17 minutes, stringing together the Magic's offense like a candied haws of sugar, and even the substitute players could receive comfortable passes; Bane scored 9 points, continuing the scoring rhythm of the starting lineup, and he can score when he comes on the court. Isaac and Howard are just a few substitutes, but they are too capable to hold up the main force and do not affect the overall situation at all.

The Magic won on three points at halftime: 4 people scored in double figures (more points, the Rockets only had 2), 13 assists (the ball was passed smoothly, the Rockets only 6), 4 steals and 6 blocks (the defense was tough, the Rockets only had 1 steal and 1 block), plus only 3 turnovers - this efficiency, the Rockets simply cannot compare.

If you want to talk about why the Rockets were rubbed on the ground in the first half, the reasons are obvious. They were all caused by themselves: First, the starters were poor and prone to making mistakes. It is true that Durant scored 15 points, but his 4 turnovers were no different from "suicide passes", which directly cost the Magic 5 points. The starters Shen Jing and Smith Jr. only had 12 points in total. Their shooting was like throwing a shot put, and they couldn't even make a shot when the basket was empty. What's even more annoying is that 5 of the team's 6 turnovers were made by the starters. A good offense was all spoiled by their own people.

Secondly, teamwork looks like it has never been practiced before. The Magic had 13 assists, and the ball was like a hot potato. Everyone was able to participate in the offense. The Rockets only had 6 assists. Except for Durant's singles, the points were scored by the substitutes themselves. Tactical coordination? It doesn't exist, it's like loose sand. Sometimes the ball passes around and returns to Durant's hands, while everyone else stands still and watches.

Third, defense is like paper. The Magic made 9 three-pointers, with a shooting percentage of 50%. As long as Wagner and Carter ran open, the Rockets would either have no one to follow, or they would be half a beat slower, as if they were walking. There was no one inside to protect the basket. The Magic scored 22 points in the penalty area, and the Rockets only blocked one shot. The basket was almost undefended, and the opponent could score if they wanted to.

After halftime, the Rockets only had a rebound advantage to look at, but just grabbing rebounds and not scoring a goal is useless? If the "loser players" from the starting lineup are still used in the second half, it is estimated that the home fans will have to leave early; if more substitutes such as Shepard and Holiday are sent up, the point difference may be recovered - after all, the substitutes can play, why not use them?

However, the Rockets' core players showed strong competitiveness in the second half, especially Shen Jing's strong rebound. At the end of the game, the Rockets defeated the Magic 117:113 in overtime. Shen Jing scored 30 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists, and a throw-in during regular time helped the team force overtime. Durant contributed 35 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. Two three-pointers in the fourth quarter and a single in overtime helped the Rockets stabilize their victory. Amen had 12 points and 10 rebounds, Smith Jr. had 10 points and 10 rebounds, Shepard contributed 16 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists, Holiday had 4 points and 1 rebound, and Adams had 3 points and 13 rebounds. For the Magic, Wagner had 29 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists, Bane had 26 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists, Blake had 18 points, Carter had 15 points, and Silva had 13 points. The Rockets have now won four consecutive games and are firmly ranked third in the Western Conference with a record of 9 wins and 3 losses, only one game away from the second-place Nuggets in the Western Conference.