CLIPPERS REMAIN WINLESS; DREXLER PLAYS WELL IN ROCKETS VICTORY : HOUSTON 124, CLIPPERS 110.Byline: Gary Washburn Daily News Staff Writer Houston's crew of old men proved three things Wednesday at the Sports Arena. First, when the Rockets are on, they are a major factor in the Western Conference. Second, rumors of Clyde Drexler's demise are greatly exaggerated, and third, the Clippers could be in for a long season if things don't change. Drexler was at his magnificent best in scoring 43 points in 34 minutes as the Rockets embarrassed the Clippers 124-110 in front of a disappointing crowd of 5,859 at the Sports Arena. It was the Clippers' third straight loss to begin the season. The game was never close. Houston jumped out 16-3 and was never threatened. Drexler took advantage of some terrible Clippers defense combined with some vintage outside shooting, making 15 of 25 shots. ``Clyde was awesome,'' Clippers coach Bill Fitch William Fitch (born May 19 1934 in Davenport, Iowa) is a former NBA coach who has been successful in making teams playoff contenders throughout his coaching career. Before entering the professional ranks he coached college ball at the University of Minnesota, Bowling Green State said. ``He took advantage of our lack of intensity and jumped on us. Our fast-break defense was atrocious.'' It was by far the Clippers' worse effort of the season and Fitch was busy looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. anybody to give productive minutes. Once again, Brent Barry Brent Robert Barry (born December 31, 1971 in Hempstead, New York) is an American professional basketball player currently with the NBA's San Antonio Spurs. He is known by his nickname, "Bones", and stands 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m). led the Clippers in scoring with 26 points, but the starting front line of Rodney Rogers Rodney Ray Rogers (born June 20, 1971, in Durham, North Carolina) is a retired American basketball player who last played power forward for the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers. Rogers played college basketball at Wake Forest University from 1990 until 1993. , Loy Vaught Loy Stephen Vaught (born February 27, 1968 in Grand Rapids, Michigan) is a retired American basketball player who spent ten seasons in the NBA, primarily with the Los Angeles Clippers. and Stojko Vrankovic combined for just 12 points. It got to the point where Fitch pulled Vrankovic after he fumbled an easy rebound into the hands of Hakeem Olajuwon Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (born Akeem Abdul Olajuwon on January 21, 1963) is a retired Nigerian-American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). , who had a laid-back 10 points because the Rockets didn't need his production. Drexler, Mario Elie Mario Antoine Elie (born November 26 1963 in New York City, United States) is a former professional basketball player and coach. Currently, he works for the Houston Rockets as a post-game analyst. Elie, an American of Haitian heritage, grew up in New York City. and Charles Barkley This article is about the basketball player. For the politican, see Charles E. Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20 1963) is a retired American professional basketball player. were enough. Barkley pulled down 21 rebounds and showed how much the Clippers miss Charles Outlaw. Fitch blames the Clippers' struggles in key stretches on lack of execution. And in the first quarter, it was evident. Houston jumped out to a 23-7 lead and was the more energetic team even though it was the Clippers coming off a three-day rest. Drexler, who scored just nine points in Tuesday night's 118-94 loss to Seattle, made up for it on Wednesday, slicing through the Clippers defense that appeared afraid of his every move. The 14-year veteran's career high was 50, collected in Sacramento in 1989 while playing for Portland. But this is eight years later, and Drexler is supposed to be pondering retirement after the season. Drexler, bad knees and all, looked as if he were playing for the Houston Cougars Houston Cougars is the name given to the sports teams of the University of Houston. Informally, the Houston Cougars have usually been referred to as Coogs. After the dissolution of the Southwest Conference in 1996, in which these teams were a member, the Cougars joined in the 1983 NCAA tournament NCAA Tournament can mean: Men's Sports
Fitch pulled Barry, Vrankovic and Rogers before the first quarter ended. Fitch has had a short leash with his starters and noticed some foul-ups at the end of the Portland game. He refused to blame it on late-game jitters jitters 'Butterflies' Psychology An episode of nervousness or anxiety that often precedes a public event; jitters is a type of performance anxiety which may affect actors in a stage production–stage fright or soloist musicians; it may respond to anxiolytics . ``There were times where we couldn't get an entry pass inside,'' said Fitch, whose team was outscored 22-6 in the final eight minutes against the Blazers.``I'm not going to blame that on lack of a killer instinct killer instinct n to have the killer instinct → ir a por todas killer instinct n → combativité f; to have the killer instinct → . That's simple execution. That's all we need. It will come with practice.'' And the lack of execution spilled over to the beginning on Wednesday. The Clippers can't afford to fall behind and depend on late-game dramatic comebacks, especially against a team like Houston. Houston's big lead forced the Clippers to abandon their half-court offense and use the fastbreak. Fitch went with Lorenzen Wright, rookie Maurice Taylor and Lamond Murray as his front line, creating more scoring opportunities and energy against Houston's aging veterans. Taylor continues to thrive with more playing time, scoring 15 points in 23 minutes on Wednesday. But it wasn't contagious to his teammates, as the Clippers shot 40 percent through the first three quarters and got no points from Vaught, Rogers and Vrankovic in the first 24 minutes. Drexler had 27 by then. The Clippers chipped away at Houston but were behind 62-45 at the half, the second time in three games the team has allowed a 60-plus points in the first half. The defense was porous and the offense matched that output. That was the lack of execution Fitch was talking about. And it's becoming more of a concern as the Clippers' slow start continues. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: (color) Houston's Clyde Drexler glides past Clippers' Rodney Rogers on his way to the basket. Associated Press |
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