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Saturday, March 15, 1997

Rockets' goal of top playoff seed in Western Conference fading

HOUSTON (AP) - The Houston Rockets' hope to be the top seed in the NBA Western Conference may be only that - hope.

As the regular season headed into the home stretch, the Rockets trailed conference-leading Utah by 3-1/2 games going into Friday's games. Utah had 19 games left. Houston 18.

If the Rockets win 15 of their final 18, the Jazz has to go only 13-6 to win the Midwest Division title. It doesn't seem like a difficult job for Utah, which has lost only 17 times all season.

Not only that, only one of their next 11 opponents and four of their final 19 have winning records.

The reality of the situation makes Wednesday's last-second one-point loss to Orlando even tougher for the Rockets to handle.

"That's why games like that are so frustrating," Houston's Mario Elie said. "We're right there in the race, battling for home-court advantage in the playoffs.

"That's what hurts when you lose a game you feel you should win. We were gaining ground on Utah, then we lose a game like that."

Houston, at 43-21, has the fourth-best record in the West, trailing the Los Angeles Lakers by percentage points and Seattle by two games.

The SuperSonics, leaders in the Pacific Division, are without a key player, injured forward Detlef Schrempf. The Lakers would appear to be vulnerable without injured center Shaquille O'Neal.

That could pave the way for Houston to climb to at least No. 2 in the West.

The reward for success during the regular season is home-court advantage in the playoffs. Failure to overtake Utah would leave the Rockets no better than a third seed in the first round because division winners get home-court edge in the first rounds.

Based on the current standings, Minnesota would be Houston's first postseason opponent.

All the jockeying has led to much scoreboard watching.

"That's what's great about this time of the year," Houston coach Rudy Tomjanovich said. "You try to treat every game the same, but when you get to this point in the season, every one of them can carry playoff implications." Send a Letter to the Editor about This Story | Start or Join A Discussion about This Story
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