Houston Rockets Lose Second Straight; Denver, Portland, Phoenix on Tap

Two straight home games at Toyota Center, two straight losses.

Thus far, 2010 has been far from kind to the Houston Rockets.

They better wake up and start playing better basketball before being left in the dust in the highly-competitive Western Conference.

Due primarily to Atlanta going on a 21-3 run heading into halftime, the Hawks hung on to defeat Houston and hand the Rockets their second consecutive loss at home.

“We just broke down,” Houston’s Carl Landry told Rockets.com staff writer Jason Friedman. “That was a stretch where every team in the NBA has times during the game where the opposing team goes on the run. They [the Hawks] went on a run and we were really not able to bounce back after that.”

Landry led the Rockets in scoring on Monday night against Atlanta, pouring in 16 points along with five rebounds.

Also hitting double-digits in scoring for Houston against the Hawks were Aaron Brooks (15 PTS, 5 AST), Luis Scola (12 PTS, 8 REB), Shane Battier (10 PTS, 7 REB), and Kyle Lowry (10 PTS, 4 AST, 3 REB).

“This is pretty much the lowest point yet for us this season and we will get better,” Lowry said. “I’m sure we will bounce back.”

I hope Lowry is right. Houston gets a chance at redemption beginning tonight when they host the Denver Nuggets.

“When going through hell, keep going,” Battier told Rockets.com’s Friedman on Wednesday afternoon, quoting former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. “So, that’s what we have to do: we have to keep going, keep working and have confidence in the plan. You can’t will it to all of a sudden come together. You do it through discipline and an adherence to the plan.”

Here’s to raising a glass in hopes that Battier and his battered Rockets teammates can bounce back and begin playing the type of basketball Houston fans witnessed on a daily basis at the start of the season.

“When we play the way we’re capable of playing, when we play hard and play together, and we share the ball, attack and stay aggressive, we’ve shown that we can play with anybody,” Battier said.

Amen, Shane; it’s time to hit the hardwood and put together a win-streak in Houston!

Denton Ramsey may be reached via email at [e-mail]