In the News

Lakers bounce back, beat Rockets 109-101 (AP)
Pau Gasol scored 30 points and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Houston Rockets 109-101 on Saturday night, getting back on track a night after a terrible outing in Oklahoma City. The short-handed Rockets, playing without Kevin Martin and Shane Battier, stayed with Los Angeles early, but were simply outmanned and soon faded in their fourth consecutive loss.

Houston Rockets lose versatile Shane Battier for at least 10 days with sprained left knee
Houston forward Shane Battier missed the Rockets' game against the Chicago Bulls and is expected to be sidelined at least 10 days with a sprained left knee.

Scola, Martin get Rockets back over .500 (AP)

Luis Scola had 23 points and 10 rebounds, Kevin Martin scored 21 points, and the yo-yo Houston Rockets moved back above .500 Tuesday night with a 96-88 win over the Washington Wizards. The Rockets took the lead for good midway through the second quarter and were hardly threatened in the second half by the Wizards, who have lost four straight and six of seven.

Houston Rockets forward Shane Battier sidelined with flu-like symptoms
Houston's Shane Battier missed the Rockets' game Saturday night against the Utah Jazz because of flu-like symptoms.

Amare, Nash carry Suns by Rockets in OT (AP)

Amare Stoudemire scored a season-high 36 points, Steve Nash handed out 16 assists and the Phoenix Suns beat the Houston Rockets 115-111 in overtime on Sunday night. Nash scored 11 points and grabbed a season-high eight rebounds, and Grant Hill added 19 points for the Suns, who snapped a five-game road losing streak.

Jackson scores 43 as Bobcats top Rockets (AP)

Stephen Jackson scored 16 of his career-high 43 points in the fourth quarter and the Charlotte Bobcats clamped down on defense after halftime to rally past the Houston Rockets, 102-94 on Tuesday night. Surpassing his previous best scoring night of 42 set nearly six years ago with Indiana, Jackson made 15 of 22 shots and 10 of 11 free throws while adding eight rebounds.

Scola's 23 help Rockets top Knicks (AP)

The Houston Rockets are entering a pivotal stretch of games, and they nearly let the first one slip away. The Rockets took a half to remember how they played much of the first two months of the season, then rallied to beat the New York Knicks 105-96 on Saturday night. Luis Scola matched a season high with 23 points, Aaron Brooks added 20 and the Rockets snapped a three-game losing streak.

Battier's late 3 helps Rockets nip Mavericks
Aaron Brooks scored 30 points, Shane Battier made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 2:11 left, and the Houston Rockets beat the Dallas Mavericks 97-94 on Thursday night.

Brooks' 30 helps Rockets top Mavs 97-94 (AP)

Aaron Brooks scored 30 points, Shane Battier made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 2:11 left, and the Houston Rockets beat the Dallas Mavericks 97-94 on Thursday night. Brooks followed Battier's 3 with one of his own for a six-point lead with 1:35 remaining, and the Rockets held on when Jason Kidd missed a potential tying shot from behind the arc in the final second.

Ariza's 31, 5 3s get Rockets by Thunder (AP)

Forget coach Rick Adelman bragging about his team's resilience. The Houston Rockets are ready for a rest. Trevor Ariza scored 31 points and hit five 3-pointers, and the Rockets closed an exhausting run of four games in five days with a 95-90 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday night.

Rockets hold off Kings 113-106 (AP)

Luis Scola scored 22 points and grabbed key rebounds in the final minutes, and the Houston Rockets held off the Sacramento Kings 113-106 Saturday night. The Rockets blew a 15-point, second-quarter lead and had to scrap in the final minutes of the fourth quarter before improving their record in the second game of back-to-backs to 4-0 this season.

Battier hits 8 of Rockets' 13 3s in win (AP)

Shane Battier scored 26 points and Trevor Ariza added 18 as the Houston Rockets made 13 3-pointers in a 124-112 preseason victory over the Toronto Raptors on Thursday night. Battier made his first seven 3-point attempts and finished 8 of 9 from behind the arc. Ariza was 3 of 5 as Houston finished 13 of 23 from 3-point range.

T-Mac practices day after re-injuring knee
Houston Rockets forward Shane Battier practiced with the team for the first time on Tuesday, but Ron Artest and Yao Ming skipped the workout after leaving Monday's win over Oklahoma City with sprained ankles. Tracy McGrady also practiced Tuesday after re-aggravating his sore left knee in Monday's game. McGrady was going to have an MRI on the knee, but decided with team officials that the test was unnecessary and practiced instead.img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Foxsports/rss/NBA/~4/457757518" height="1" width="1"/

Battier will miss most of preseason
Houston Rockets forward Shane Battier will be sidelined up to four weeks and miss most of preseason because of an inflammation in his left foot. He had surgery May 9 to remove bone spurs from his left ankle, and the team said the foot inflammation occurred during rehabilitation. The Rockets open training camp Tuesday. The 6-foot-8 forward started 78 games last season and averaged 9.3 points and 5.1 rebounds. He was one of the team's most dependable 3-point shooters, hitting 38 percent.img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Foxsports/rss/NBA/~4/404086762" height="1" width="1"/

Rockets' Battier to miss month with injured foot
Houston Rockets forward Shane Battier will be sidelined up to four weeks and miss most of preseason because of an inflammation in his left foot.

Rockets F Battier to miss up to 4 weeks (AP)
Houston Rockets forward Shane Battier will be sidelined up to four weeks and miss most of preseason because of an inflammation in his left foot. He had surgery May 9 to remove bone spurs from his left ankle, and the team said the foot inflammation occurred during rehabilitation. The Rockets open training camp Tuesday.

Rockets' Battier, Alston get some ankle work done
Houston forward Shane Battier and point guard Rafer Alston had minor surgical procedures to repair injuries that occurred late in the season.

Rockets' Battier, Alston have surgery (AP)
Houston forward Shane Battier and point guard Rafer Alston had minor surgical procedures to repair injuries that occurred late in the season. Battier underwent arthroscopic surgery to remove bone spurs in his left ankle. Alston's surgery repaired ligament and tendon damage in his right ankle. Both procedures were performed Friday.

Rockets stay alive, rip Jazz 95-69 (AP)

Tracy McGrady scored 29 points, Luis Scola added 18 points and 12 rebounds, and the Houston Rockets staved off elimination Tuesday night by routing the Utah Jazz 95-69 in Game 5 of their first-round series. Dikembe Mutombo grabbed 10 rebounds as the Rockets cut their series deficit to 3-2 and forced Game 6 in Utah on Friday night.

Rockets loose heading into Game 5 (AP)
The Houston Rockets were loose and laughing on Monday, wrapping up another practice with the same free throw contest they've played since training camp. If the Rockets were stressed about facing elimination in Game 5 against Utah on Tuesday night, they were hiding it. "Practice was competitive and guys were going after it," forward Shane Battier said.

Williams pushes Jazz to 3-1 series lead (AP)

Mehmet Okur can expect to get something nice from teammate Deron Williams. Okur bailed out Williams when he missed two free throws with 7.3 seconds left, then Okur made two from the line to seal an 86-82 win over the Houston Rockets on Saturday that put the Jazz up 3-1 in the best-of-7 series. "Memo saved my butt.

Garnett wins defensive player award
Boston's Kevin Garnett won the NBA's defensive player of the year award Tuesday. He beat out Denver's Marcus Camby and Houston's Shane Battier. The 6-foot-11 forward led the Celtics with 9.2 rebounds per game. He added 18.8 points, 1.2 blocks and 1.4 steals. Garnett helped the Celtics to league-best records of 66-16 (.805) overall and 31-10 (.738) on the road. Boston held opponents to just 90.3 points (second in the NBA) after allowing 99.2 points per game a season ago.

Garnett wins defensive player award (AP)
Boston's Kevin Garnett won the NBA's defensive player of the year award Tuesday. He beat out Denver's Marcus Camby and Houston's Shane Battier. The 6-foot-11 forward led the Celtics with 9.2 rebounds per game. He added 18.8 points, 1.2 blocks and 1.4 steals. Garnett helped the Celtics to league-best records of 66-16 (.805) overall and 31-10 (.738) on the road.

Celts' Garnett named NBA's top defensive player
Boston's Kevin Garnett won the NBA's defensive player of the year award Tuesday. He beat out Denver's Marcus Camby and Houston's Shane Battier.

McGrady says he'll play against Suns
Houston Rockets guard Tracy McGrady will play against Phoenix on Friday night after missing Wednesday's game against Seattle with a sore left shoulder. But team officials said Rockets forward Shane Battier was questionable for the game with a bruised left foot and ankle. Battier played 18 minutes on Wednesday, then sat out most of the second half as the Rockets pulled away for a 103-80 victory. Houston is 53-25, one-half game ahead of Phoenix in the tight Western Conference standings.

Rockets have 20-20 vision
Hear from Shane Battier after the Rockets' 20th straight victory. Houston is now tied with the 1970-71 Bucks for the second-longest winning streak in NBA history.

Rockets win 15th straight, tie club mark (AP)

Tracy McGrady scored 22 points, Shane Battier added 20 and the Houston Rockets tied a franchise record with their 15th straight win, a 103-89 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday night. The winning streak is the longest in the NBA this season and matches the longest one in franchise history, reached twice, with the last one coming in their championship season of 1993-94.

Rockets extend road win streak to 9 (AP)

Shane Battier chuckled before revealing Houston's defensive game plan to stop LeBron James. "Well, we hoped he had a good time in New Orleans," Battier said. It was the Rockets, though, who gave James the headache. Rafer Alston scored 22 points, Yao Ming added 16 points and 14 rebounds, and Houston tied a team record Tuesday night with its ninth straight road win, 93-85 over the Cleveland Cavaliers,...

Yao lifts Rockets past Cavaliers 92-77 (AP)

Yao Ming had 22 points and 12 rebounds as the Houston Rockets overcame a poor night from ailing All-Star Tracy McGrady to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 92-77 on Thursday night. Rafer Alston had 17 points and nine assists and Shane Battier had 15 points for the Rockets, who've won nine of their last 10.

Rockets earn sixth straight road win (AP)

Rookie Carl Landry scored 13 of his career-high 22 points in the fourth quarter, and the Houston Rockets beat the Indiana Pacers 106-103 on Friday night for their sixth straight road victory. Tracy McGrady had 19 points, Yao Ming added 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Shane Battier scored 13 points for Houston (26-20).

Rockets end Blazers' home streak at 12 (AP)

Led by newest member Tracy McGrady, Houston's reserves carried the Rockets to victory. McGrady had 15 points, Carl Landry added 12 points and eight rebounds and the Rockets stopped the Portland Trail Blazers' home-winning streak with an 89-79 win Friday night. "It's a great tribute to our group ... I think we've found ourselves." McGrady said.

Yao leads Rockets past struggling Knicks (AP)

Yao Ming scored 30 points, grabbed eight rebounds and dished out six assists and the Houston Rockets won for the fourth time in six games without Tracy McGrady, beating the New York Knicks 103-91 on Saturday night. Rookie point guard Aaron Brooks scored a career-high 22 for the Rockets, who've won six straight meetings with the Knicks.

Nuggets outlast Rockets 112-111 in 2 OT (AP)

Anthony Carter hit a floater in the lane with 0.8 seconds left in double overtime to give the Denver Nuggets a 112-111 win over the shorthanded Houston Rockets on Thursday. Carmelo Anthony scored 37 points and a career-high 16 rebounds, and Allen Iverson had 36 points and nine assists for Denver, which ended a two-game losing streak.

Rockets' Battier hurt after taking elbow
Houston Rockets forward Shane Battier left Saturday night's game against Dallas after getting elbowed in the head by Dirk Nowitzki, a blow that opened a bloody gash. The two were going after a miss by Yao Ming late in the first quarter. Battier went straight to the bench after taking the hit and grabbed a towel as blood spilled on the floor. Trainer Keith Jones walked Battier to the locker room. Rockets spokesman Nelson Luis said Battier was getting stitches.

McGrady helps Rockets end 6-game slide (AP)

Tracy McGrady scored 35 points and Yao Ming had 22 points and 13 rebounds as the Houston Rockets snapped a six-game losing streak with a 109-81 win over the Denver Nuggets on Saturday night. Shane Battier grabbed a season-high 12 rebounds and Houston outrebounded Denver 57-38 to overcome their 17 percent shooting from 3-point range (3-for-18).

Shaq, Wade lead Heat to first home win (AP)

Shaquille O'Neal and Dwyane Wade both played their best games of the season, and the Miami Heat finally won at home, beating the Houston Rockets 98-91 on Friday night. O'Neal had season highs of 26 points and 14 rebounds, Wade scored a season-high 31 points, and the Heat handed the Rockets their sixth straight loss.

Duncan leads Spurs past Rockets
Tim Duncan had 25 points and 13 rebounds, and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Houston Rockets 90-84 on Friday night. Manu Ginobili added 19 points for the Spurs and Michael Finley had 17. Luis Scola, whose rights were traded from the Spurs to the Rockets over the summer, had a breakout game, scoring 20 points. Shane Battier added 16. The Rockets, without an injured Tracy McGrady, managed to tie the game at 80 with 3:48 to play on Scola's jump shot.

Yao's Rockets beat Yi's Bucks 104-88 (AP)

When it comes to basketball in China, Yao Ming is still the king. But Yi Jianlian's time could be coming soon. Yao and Yi each had their share of highlights in the much-anticipated first matchup of the country's greatest player and its top rising star, and Yao's Houston Rockets beat Yi's Milwaukee Bucks 104-88 on Friday night.

Battier trey seals road win for Rockets
Shane Battier made a 3-pointer with 2.5 seconds left, and the Houston Rockets withstood a furious rally from Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers in a 95-93 victory on Tuesday night. Bryant scored 45 points, 18 in the fourth quarter, in a rally that came up just short. Tracy McGrady scored 30 points, Yao Ming had 25 points and 12 rebounds, and the Rockets made Rick Adelman's debut as their coach a success.

Kobe scores 45, but Rockets edge Lakers (AP)

Shane Battier made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 2.5 seconds left, and the Houston Rockets withstood a furious rally from Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers in a 95-93 victory on Tuesday night. Bryant scored 45 points, 18 in the fourth quarter, in a comeback that fell just short. Tracy McGrady scored 30 points, Yao Ming had 25 points and 12 rebounds, and the Rockets made Rick Adelman's debut as...

Shane Battier, G/F - HOU
Battier finally shows up for Rockets Visit Rotoworld.com for more analysis on this update.