Houston Rockets: 3 takeaways from huge Game 4 vs. Warriors

3. Rebounding and hustle plays prove to be vital down the stretch

In a series where every single mistake has proven to play an instrumental factor within a game’s outcome, the Rockets have recently come up big by making the critical hustle plays when it counts.

Houston — which finished with a -16 rebounding margin through the first two games — has worked relentlessly to rectify its rebounding issues in the early going, out-rebounding Golden State 105-78 over the last two games. In addition, they capitalized on their refined energy and effort inside the paint by generating several second-chance scoring opportunities such as these throughout the course of Game 4:

https://twitter.com/HoustonRockets/status/1125576109142224898

https://twitter.com/HoustonRockets/status/1125591170262949888

Examining who wins the battle on the boards might be the last thing one might do following an outing, but doing so in this series will more than likely prove to be a necessity for those who seek to uncover where the biggest hidden advantage lies between these two rivals.

Through the first four games of the series, the team that has emerged with the most rebounds by the sound of the final buzzer has won every game. The winner has also finished with the most second-chance points.

Whichever squad finds a way to capture the most offensive rebounds and makes the critical hustle plays down the stretch will more than likely be the one that advances on to the Western Conference Finals within the coming days.