The Houston Rockets have experienced enough uneven results executing the two-man game between All-Stars Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun that the moments of vulnerability resonate as vividly as those games when that duo appears unstoppable.
Against the New York Knicks on Tuesday in the first game of their penultimate scheduled back-to-back, Durant and Sengun excelled in large part because their teammates made the Knicks pay whenever they attempted any aggressive measure to slow that high-scoring tandem.
Durant paired a game-high 27 points with eight assists while Sengun posted a 13-point, 10-assist double-double in the Rockets’ 111-94 victory. Houston (46-29) will host the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night, riding a three-game winning streak and brimming with confidence.
The Rockets shot an impressive 53.8% against the Knicks and drained 15 of 35 3-pointers. Their success in shooting the ball was linked directly to their ability to both share and protect it.
Houston amassed 35 assists on its 42 field goals and committed only 10 turnovers. The Rockets have averaged just 10.6 turnovers during their current winning streak, more than five fewer turnovers than the 15.7 they average this season, a figure that ranks 27th in the NBA.
Amen Thompson matched Durant with eight assists. Sengun entered Tuesday averaging 20.7 points per game. He took only five shots against the Knicks, but the Rockets’ offense hummed with Sengun at the hub, and with Durant and Sengun combining for only four turnovers.
The Knicks failed at forcing Durant and Sengun into mistakes with ball pressure. Houston succeeded because Reed Sheppard, Tari Eason and Jabari Smith Jr. shot a combined 10-for-19 from behind the arc when the ball swung from Durant or Sengun to an available teammate.
“I think they do a good job of recognizing who has it going on what matchup,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said of Durant and Sengun. “But teams will try to take us out of that, and as I’ve always said, we’ve got to improve against the blitz and making the right plays in the pocket. When you see Alperen being that decisive and making the right read, you’re encouraged by it.
“We don’t want to overdose on that (Durant-Sengun two-man game). We’ve got Amen, we’ve got Reed, and different guys that can handle it. It felt like they were trying to guard guys different ways and that’s tough when you have three different handlers coming off the pick-and-roll.”
The Bucks (30-45) snapped a four-game slide and a stretch of 14 losses in 17 games with their 123-99 home win over the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday.
The Bucks were without Giannis Antetokounmpo (knee), Kevin Porter Jr. (knee) and Bobby Portis (wrist) against the Mavericks, but did have Kyle Kuzma and Myles Turner available. Their presence made a difference, as Kuzma posted 20 points, six rebounds and three steals while Turner produced 10 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots.
“It was great to have them,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. “Don’t know if we’ll have them (Wednesday), but it was great to have them.”
