Rockets 132, Bucks 100: Houston's second-quarter surge and VanVleet's third-quarter run make it 5-0
The Rockets outscored Milwaukee 34-14 in the second quarter and played without Steven Adams and, per SI, Alperen Sengun.
The Houston Rockets stayed unbeaten with a 132-100 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night, improving to 5-0 while Milwaukee fell to 1-4, according to the Associated Press.
Where it was decided
The first quarter was close; Houston led 23-21 after one, per SB Nation's recap, and Milwaukee briefly led after a 7-0 run. The second quarter changed that. The AP reports Houston outscored Milwaukee 34-14 in the period to take a 57-35 halftime lead. Sports Illustrated notes the Bucks shot 6 of 24 in the quarter. The AP adds that Milwaukee was 4 of 24 from three-point range in the first half and attempted a single free throw in that span.
Houston opened the third quarter on an 8-0 run, and Fred VanVleet then scored 15 straight points, pushing the lead to 81-61, the AP reports. The Rockets led 95-69 after three quarters, per SB Nation, and the fourth was played out.
Who did the damage
VanVleet led Houston with 24 points on 7-of-14 shooting, including 4 of 9 from three, the AP says; it notes he missed all of last season with a torn ACL. Sports Illustrated reports he was scoreless in the first quarter and had struggled in his first three games back before taking over after halftime. Amen Thompson scored 23 on 10-of-16 shooting and Kevin Durant added 18. Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 16 in 15 minutes, per the AP. Houston shot 54.8% and made 23 of 26 free throws.
For Milwaukee, Tyler Herro scored 23 and Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 19, the AP reports.
Short-handed, still dominant
Houston was missing players. The AP says Steven Adams sat with a right calf strain. Sports Illustrated reports Alperen Sengun missed his first game of the season with low back soreness, leaving the Rockets without three of their top nine players, and that Clint Capela produced 10 points, eight rebounds, three steals and two blocks off the bench. Durant said of the defense in the middle quarters: "Second quarter, third quarter, I think our defense was incredible," per SI.
Sports Illustrated also notes this is Houston's first 5-0 start since 2014-15. On the other side, Milwaukee's young lineup struggled to score, and Marcus Smart missed his third straight game with a left forearm strain, per the AP.
Houston visits Dallas on Friday in NBA Cup play. Milwaukee hosts Cleveland on Saturday.