Raptors (37-17) at Houston Rockets (36-18): clash of titans

The Toronto Raptors face their second tough test in 24 hours. Riding roughshod over a turnover-prone Atlanta Hawks squad was a blast – can the Raps fly to Texas and do it again?

HOUSTON ROCKETS UPDATE

The Rockets started the season with two superstars, Dwight (Superman) Howard and James (The Beard) Harden. That’s two more than our team, if you’re scoring at home, yet the Rox’ record is virtually the same as the Raps. [20-second timeout: How essential is the presence of one or more superstars to an NBA championship team? I don’t know, but I’d like to explore the topic. Opinions welcome.] That’s partly because Howard has missed a bunch of games with knee problems, and will be out tonight. The All-Star Game occurred at the right time for Houston, as Howard is recovering from his latest injury during a significant period of league downtime. He’s expected to be back for the playoffs. The Rox are a respectable 3-3 since Howard went out.

Ex-Rap Joey Dorsey has been starting at centre, but he’d be questionable as a backup. The Rox won’t be in a happy mood against the Raps, having lost to cross-state rivals Dallas last night. They are also trying to figure out how to use some new faces; Pablo Prigioni and K.J. McDaniels have joined via trade. I wouldn’t expect either to impact Houston’s rotation. Their second unit has dramatically upped its scoring since acquiring Josh Smith and Corey Brewer, and will give our people much trouble.

Donatas Motiejunas will have a hug for fellow Lithuanian Jonas Valanciunas prior to tip-off, then the two big men will be bashing each other.

Apr 2, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan (10) is fouled by Houston Rockets forward Donatas Motiejunas (20) at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

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3 KEYS TO RAPTORS VICTORY

(1) Defend the long ball. This might be 2 keys against the Rox, who depend heavily on 3-point shooting. While this team doesn’t jump to mind (well, my mind anyway) as the league’s leading bombers, they are well past Golden State. Houston is on pace to break the NBA record for most 3-balls made in a season; they lead in made 3s with 11.8 PG [Per Game]. That’s almost 3 more PG than our team’s 9.0, which is a big delta.

(2) Keep Harden under control. Yeah…sure. This guy leads the NBA in scoring at 27.4 Points PG. He’s produced 24 games of 30+ points. He also ranks highly in assists and (guard) rebounding. James Johnson is listed as a starter, but I have serious doubts about even his considerable defensive ability being enough to slow down The Beard. Terrence Ross has the length and quicks to stay with Harden, but is prone to foul difficulty when covering elite players.

(3) Protect the ball. Houston ranks second in steals, which isn’t surprising considering the presence of noted ball hawks like Patrick Beverley and Corey Brewer. They are also second in turnovers (behind Philadelphia in both stats – what’s that about?), so attack the ball, guys.

PREDICTION

The Raps avoided fatiguing their starters against the Hawks, so this game shouldn’t be as wearing as back to backs usually are. With Houston having played also, we might actually have an advantage. Toronto 107-Houston 102.