Veteran guard Eric Gordon scored a team-high 24 points on 10-of-14 shooting (71.4%), including 4-of-6 on 3-pointers (66.7%), leading the young Houston Rockets to an improbable five-game winning streak with Friday’s 118-116 home victory (box score) over Orlando.
Fittingly, Gordon hit the game-winning shot on a runner with only 1.6 seconds left. That lifted the Rockets (6-16) to a feel-good win at Toyota Center over the Magic (5-19), despite losing prized young point guard Kevin Porter Jr. to another re-aggravation of his left thigh contusion.
Cole Anthony led Orlando with 26 points (10-of-20 shooting) and 7 assists, but his attempt at a winning 3-pointer at the buzzer was just short as Houston escaped with the win. Other Houston players to score in double-figures included Christian Wood (20 points, 14 rebounds), Jae’Sean Tate (15 points, 7 rebounds), Garrison Matthews (16 points), and rookie big man Alperen Sengun (13 points, 5 assists).
See below for highlights and analysis of individual player performances by the Rockets from Friday’s game. Houston will look to extend its unlikely winning streak to six games when New Orleans (7-18) visits Toyota Center on Sunday night, with tipoff scheduled for 6:00 p.m. Central.
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