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Reeling Thunder look to snap skid against Rockets

Nov 17, 2008 - 2:47 PM Houston (6-4) at Oklahoma City (1-9), 8:00 pm EST

OKLAHOMA CITY (Ticker) -- The last time the Houston Rockets took on the Oklahoma City Thunder, the newly relocated franchise gave them all they could handle in what turned out to be a showdown.

Just over two weeks later, the Western Conference foes meet again Monday night as Houston visits reeling Oklahoma City.

The Rockets pulled away late for an 89-77 triumph in Houston the last time these teams met on November 1.

The Thunder posted their only win of the season the following night against Minnesota but have lost seven consecutive contests since then.

Oklahoma City will be hard-pressed to end that slide Monday against a Houston squad that has won seven straight and 14 of the last 15 meetings in this series.

The Rockets, who have alternated wins and losses in their last six games, are coming off Saturday's 91-82 victory over the New Orleans Hornets.

Yao Ming scored 21 points while Tracy McGrady added 18 and nine rebounds for defensive-minded Houston, which limited New Orleans' Chris Paul to a season-low 12 points.

The 29-year-old McGrady has struggled somewhat this season, averaging just 16.7 points per game after scoring at least 21.6 per game in each of the last eight seasons.

That kind of scoring would be a welcome on a team like Oklahoma City, which is averaging just 89.9 points per game this campaign - tied for second-worst in the league.

The Thunder have gotten production from second-year players Kevin Durant and Jeff Green, who combine to score 36.3 points per contest.