Rockets at Wizards
After dropping the opener of a four-game road trip in Atlanta on Friday, the Houston Rockets look to get back on track Saturday night with a visit to Washington. Houston stumbled to its lowest total of the season in Friday's 83-80 loss, falling to 2-3 in its last five games after moving to 10 games over .500 in Wednesday's win over the Lakers. "The last few games have been a struggle," guard Jeremy Lin told the Houston Chronicle, adding, "Nothing comes easy. I'm not sure what it is."
Washington had a two-game winning streak snapped in Friday's loss to Indiana, scoring an NBA season-low 66 points in the process. The Wizards notched another season-low, shooting 32.1 percent last time out and will aim to put that disappointing result behind them. "Today is a new day," coach Randy Wittman told the Washington Post before Friday's game. "And that's how our guys have to look at it."
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CSN Houston, CSN Washington
ABOUT THE ROCKETS (23-14): Despite the offensive struggles, Houston had an opportunity to win Friday night - but after James Harden gave the Rockets the lead with 2:19 to play, a series of fouls, turnovers and only one more field goal down the stretch sealed the Rockets' fate. Houston's eight fourth-quarter turnovers, in particular, seemed to irk coach Kevin McHale, who had made it a point of emphasis in recent practices. "Bad passing. We work on it (in practice). You have to be able to deliver the ball."
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (16-18): Compounding Washington's shooting woes in the loss to Indiana was an inability to convert from the free throw line. The Wizards entered play in the bottom third of the league - shooting 74.6 percent from the line - but that took a serious dip after Washington sank just nine of its 23 attempts on Friday. Leading scorers John Wall and Bradley Beal accounted for nearly half of the offense for the Wizards against the Pacers, totaling 30 points.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Rockets have won four of their last five games against Washington and are 10-3 against Eastern Conference opponents on the season.
2. The Wizards allow 99.4 points per game - good for 12th in the NBA.
3. Houston's scoring average of 105.8 points ranks third in the league, trailing only Portland and Minnesota.