HOUSTON (SportsRadio 610)- They had to sweat it out, but when Kawhi Leonard's three at the buzzer came up short it sealed the Rockets 121-119 win over the Toronto Raptors Friday night at Toyota Center.
It looked like a routine win for much of the night with the Rockets leading by seven when the fourth quarter started. Toronto cut it to five when Norman Powell connected from three with 8:34 left, but the Rockets scored the next 14 points to seemingly put the game away. Leonard pulled Toronto to within nine, but there was only 1:15 remaining on the clock and James Harden knocked down a pair of free throws to increase the lead to double digits. That's when things got ugly.
Leonard hit a three, and after a Harden turnover Danny Green hit another thanks to a couple of Pascal Siakam offensive rebounds. After receiving the inbounds pass from P.J. Tucker, Eric Gordon stepped out of bounds, after which Siakam knocked down a triple. Gordon followed that up with an ill-advised three as he tried to draw a foul. Siakam grabbed the rebound, and after a timeout, Leonard tried to win it, but was forced into a tough shot by Harden.
Harden finished with 35 points, giving him 22 straight 30-point games. He shot just 9-of-25 from the field, 2-of-13 from behind the three-point line, but was perfect on his 15 free throw attempts as the Rockets improve to 28-20 on the season.
Tucker's 3-pointer with 8:32 left in the first quarter broke an 8-8 tie and started a 17-2 Rockets run, and the first quarter ended with the Rockets leading 33-20. The Rockets built the lead up to 22, but the Raptors exploded for 41 points in the period and trimmed the lead all the way down to six when Green drained a three with 2:20 left before halftime, though the Rockets still led by nine at the break.
Harden started the second half half with a floater to push the Rockets advantage back into double digit, but off an Gordon turnover, Siakam capped a 9-2 spurt with a fastbreak dunk to bring the Raptors within four, but the Rockets rallied with an 18-4 run.
Gordon scored 24 points, while Kenneth Faried, in his Rockets home debut finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds.
Leonard's 32 points led the Raptors while Green and Siakam chipped in 22, but the Raptors fall to 36-15.
Coming up next for the Rockets will be a battle with the Orlando Magic Sunday evening at Toyota Center.
