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Rockets and Raptors clash in Space City

Feb 28, 2012 - 3:52 PM (Sports Network) - The Houston Rockets will try to continue their dominant play at home when they entertain the Toronto Raptors tonight.

The Rockets are a solid 14-4 in Space City this season and 4-1 on a six-game residency that took a backseat to the All-Star break. They have won three in a row on the residency and recorded a 93-87 triumph over Philadelphia last Wednesday behind 19 points and 10 rebounds from Luis Scola. Kevin Martin scored 14 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter and Kyle Lowry finished with 13 for the Rockets, who have won seven of 10 overall.

Houston head coach Kevin McHale was happy to see his team focused with the upcoming hiatus of play.

"Those games scare you just because [the players'] minds are on their break going to Tahiti or wherever," said McHale.

McHale's team will visit Utah after the homestand before heading back to the Toyota Center for back-to-back contests versus the Nuggets and Clippers.

Toronto completed a seven-game homestand with a 103-93 victory over Detroit last Wednesday before the All-Star extravaganza and went 2-5 on the residency.

DeMar DeRozan netted 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting to go with seven rebounds, while Leandro Barbosa finished with 17 points and James Johnson netted 15 for the Raptors, who won for just the second time in nine tries.

"We definitely needed that," DeRozan said. "Hopefully we can carry this on to the second half. Detroit's playing well, so it was a good win."

Aaron Gray contributed 12 points and 12 rebounds in a winning effort.

The Raptors are set to play back-to-back road games in Houston and New Orleans, and are 5-12 as the visitor this season. They are still without center Andrea Bargnani (calf) and forward Linas Kleiza (knee/ankle) is questionable for Tuesday's game. There's a slight chance Bargnani could play on the trek. He is averaging 23.5 ppg this season.

Toronto and Houston have split a home-and-home series in each of the past five seasons since the Raptors swept the set back in 2005-06. The Rockets have won four straight and 13 of 16 contests as the host in this matchup.