Bucks at Rockets
THE STORY: After enduring a brutal schedule to start the season, the Houston Rockets have finally seen the slate lighten up. The result has been seven straight wins. The Rockets kick off a four-game homestand against four teams with losing records when they host the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday. Kevin Martin has been a key to the surge with a re-discovered shooting stroke that seemed to be lost in the weeks following the NBA-squashed trade that would have sent him to New Orleans. The teams that have beaten Houston have been able to light up the scoreboard. Getting into shootouts is not something that suits the Bucks. Milwaukee ranks in the bottom third of the league in scoring at 92.3 points and has reached 100 points once in dropping four of its last six games.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSWI (Milwaukee), FSH (Houston)
ABOUT THE BUCKS (6-10): Milwaukee appeared to be turning a corner over the weekend, when it secured impressive victories on the road at New York and Miami. While they were able to score against the Knicks, the common theme in each of those games was a defensive effort that limited each team to 37 percent shooting. Milwaukee suffered a letdown on Monday, squandering its opportunity for the first three-game winning streak of the season by letting the Atlanta Hawks go off at 46 percent in a 97-92 setback. Brandon Jennings has been on fire recently, averaging 27.5 points and seven assists in the last four games.
ABOUT THE ROCKETS (10-7): Houston played seven of its first 10 games on the road and faced only one team - the Los Angeles Clippers - that did not make the playoffs last season. In their last seven games, the Rockets have played five times at home and faced teams like the Washington Wizards, Sacramento Kings, Detroit Pistons and New Orleans Hornets. Martin is putting up 25.3 points over his last six games after averaging 16.4 in the previous 11.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Jennings has averaged 19 points and shot 50 percent from 3-point range in three career games against Houston.
2. Martin has put up 19.6 points in eight career games against Milwaukee.
3. The Rockets have taken eight of the last 10 in the series.