Houston Rockets: 3 takeaways from Game 5 clincher vs. Jazz

2. Defense comes through in the clutch

Once upon a time, the Houston Rockets were solely known for boasting one of the top offenses in the NBA.

Now, things have begun to change in H-Town, as the franchise that once sought to pull out games utilizing the Moreyball concept recently managed to prevail against the Jazz with the help of its defense.

In a game that went down all the way to the wire, the Rockets incorporated their switch-heavy scheme again to impose their will on Utah’s offense, generating a string of consecutive stops, blocks and turnovers to seal the victory.

https://twitter.com/HoustonRockets/status/1121238699025600512

During the final two and a half minutes of regulation, the Rockets limited Utah to just two points on 1-of-8 shooting from the field. Holding the likes of Donovan Mitchell in check throughout the majority of the night, the individual defensive play of Eric Gordon, James Harden and P.J. Tucker proved to be more than enough to help Houston counter its own offensive struggles in Game 5.

"“We made a lot of improvements and we got better,” Rockets forward P.J. Tucker told Jenny Dial Creech of the Houston Chronicle when talking about Houston’s stellar defense down the stretch after Game 5. “We worked hard enough and everybody, especially in the playoffs, wants to work hard and wants to be out there and right now. If you can’t guard, you can’t be out there.”"

https://twitter.com/HoustonRockets/status/1121249284438020097

Although it remains to be seen how Houston’s defense will fare against its next opponent in the Western Conference semifinals, nobody can deny this group has found a way to reach its peak at arguably the most ideal time of the year.