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With streak over, Rockets focus on stretch run

Mar 19, 2008 - 1:39 PM Houston (46-21) at New Orleans (45-21) 8:00 pm EDT

NEW ORLEANS (Ticker) - With their 22-game winning streak a thing of the past, the Houston Rockets now have to concentrate on the furious battle going on atop the Western Conference.

The Rockets will be attempting to hang onto the top spot in the West when they visit the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday.

Owners of the second-longest winning streak in NBA history, the Rockets appeared to run out of gas on Tuesday, falling to the Boston Celtics, 94-74. The club shot just 29-of-70 from the field and Tracy McGrady finished with just eight points in 34 minutes.

Coming off games against the Los Angeles Lakers and Celtics, this don't get any easier for the Rockets, who now travel to play New Orleans, Golden State and Phoenix.

Two games below .500 on January 2, the Rockets have gone 31-4 since and are currently tied with the Lakers (46-21) atop the West. Defense has been the key to the surge, as the team has not allowed more than 100 points in a game since a 106-103 win over the Indiana Pacers on February 1.

The Hornets, just one-half game behind Houston and Los Angeles, are coming off a 108-97 win over the Chicago Bulls on Monday - their sixth win in eight games.

Chris Paul continues to make his case for the MVP, going off for 37 points and 13 assists against the Bulls. The third-year star leads New Orleans in scoring (21.6), assists (11.3), steals (2.7) and free throw percentage (86.5).

The Hornets won the first meeting between the teams but the Rockets have taken each of the last two, including a 106-96 win on March 8.