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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
HOUSTON (AP) -- Ruben Patterson thought he was fouled. Kenny
Thomas wasn't sure.
With Houston leading 89-88 and 10 seconds to play, Thomas
blocked Patterson's shot in the lane and then dunked it at the
other end of the court to give the Rockets a 91-88 victory over the
Seattle SuperSonics on Thursday night.
"I don't want to make a comment, but I got fouled and I didn't
get the call," said Patterson, who finished with 12 points. "The
situation was what I wanted and I guess the ref didn't want to make
that call at crunch time, but I got fouled."
Thomas, who got his 18th start of the year in place of the
injured Maurice Taylor, was bewildered when asked about the final
seconds.
"I thought I heard a whistle," Thomas said of the play. "It
was kind of loud in here. I don't think it's been that loud in a
long time.
"Then the next thing I know, the ball is in my hands and I
slammed it. I didn't even know how much time was left. I thought
there was about a minute or so to go."
The Rockets were just glad Thomas, who finished with 17 points
and 10 rebounds, was on the spot.
"Kenny played a tremendous game," coach Rudy Tomjanovich said.
"He made some explosive plays and then had the big block at the
end. It was what we needed.
"I'm very proud of the way he just found a way to get the job
done. He ran the court, he dunked it, he blocked shots, he banged
with bigger guys underneath. He's a warrior."
Seattle coach Nate McMillan was unhappy with his team's
performance throughout the game, much less at the end.
"We didn't show any patience in that situation," McMillan said
of the last play. "They knew the play that was called and the
Rockets were scrambling. We've practiced that situation over and
over to get the point guard (Gary Payton) the ball. We just have to
show patience and execute the play. Instead we rushed it and we
turned the ball over."
McMillan said a timeout would not have helped the Sonics late.
"We had just scored on that play the last time down," he said.
"Either Gary Payton is supposed to create or Ruben Patterson is
supposed to go to the basket. If I had called time out, I would
have just told them the same play and they would have a chance to
set their defense. It's a simple play. It's April now. We've got to
know how to make the plays by now."
Cuttino Mobley had 21 points, Steve Francis 16 and Shandon
Anderson 15 as the Rockets overcame a Sonics rallied from as many
as 14 down.
Seattle outscored Houston 8-0 in a 1:49 span late in the fourth
to tie the game at 84.
Payton and Vin Baker each had 20 points for Seattle. After
winning 10 of 11, the Sonics have now lost their last two.
Beginning with 6:38 to go in the first, Payton scored six
consecutive points over the next 3½ minutes to put Seattle up 18-13
before Mobley hit three of four 3-pointers to help the Rockets forge a
22-22 tie at the end of the quarter.
Houston used a 15-2 run to move ahead 46-36 before taking a
47-41 halftime lead.
Francis scored eight points in an 11-2 Rockets third-quarter
run. Their lead reached 14 points before Houston ended the period
with a 70-58 advantage.
Game notes
The Rockets placed Maurice Taylor (sore left and right
Achilles' tendons) on the injured list for the remainder of the
year and activated guard Sean Colson. ... Carlos Rogers missed the
game with conjunctivitis (pink eye) in both eyes. ... The Sonics
are 38-4 when leading entering the fourth quarter.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Seattle Clubhouse
Houston Clubhouse
RECAPS
New York 93
Washington 80
Sacramento 92
Utah 86
LA Lakers 100
Chicago 88
Dallas 108
Atlanta 94
Houston 91
Seattle 88
San Antonio 101
Denver 80
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