In what is effectively the rubber match of a three-game series between the teams over a nine-day span, the Houston Rockets will again face the Suns at Phoenix’s Footprint Center on Saturday night.
The Rockets (25-34) won last Friday’s game in Houston, while the Suns (35-24) won Thursday’s rematch in Phoenix.
The location of Saturday’s game could be bad news for the Rockets, who are a woeful 5-24 away from Houston this season. A lofty 20-10 home mark has kept the overall record fairly respectable.
For the reeling Rockets, whose odds of a run to the Western Conference play-in tournament continue to tumble, the biggest problem in Thursday’s loss was finding sources of offense outside of Jalen Green. While the third-year guard had a team-high 34 points and a season-high seven made 3-pointers, Houston shot just 33-of-99 overall and 11-of-45 from 3-point range (24.4%) as a team.
In particular, talented big man Alperen Sengun struggled with efficiency and foul trouble against Jusuf Nurkic before being ejected, and he’ll look to get back on track in Saturday’s rematch.