James Harden praises contribution of Rockets team-mate PJ Tucker after sealing series win over Jazz
Thursday 25 April 2019 12:16, UK
James Harden and Chris Paul praised the contribution of their team-mate PJ Tucker after the Houston Rockets completed a 4-1 first-round series win over the Utah Jazz.
Defensive specialist Tucker played a team-high 40 minutes in Game 5, augmented his trademark gritty defense with eight points, nine rebounds, a steal and four blocks as the Rockets successfully closed out the Jazz with a 100-93 victory that sealed the series.
Tucker showed great heart when, after missing two free throws that would have given the Rockets a 96-93 with 1:09 left in the game, he helped team-mate Eric Gordon to force a turnover from Donovan Mitchell on the ensuing Jazz possession.
Mitchell immediately fouled Tucker and sent him back to the free throw line, just 15 seconds after his two earlier misses. Under severe pressure, the Rockets forward made both foul shots to put Houston three points ahead. On the very next play, Harden blocked a Rudy Gobert shot, was fouled and made the game safe with a pair of free throws of his own.
Harden, who scored a game-high 26 points, hailed Tucker's determination while Chris Paul backed his team-mate's ability to put the two missed free throws out of his mind.
"Two huge free throws, two big steals that he got," said Harden of Tucker. "He took his time to knock those free throws down and it was huge for us to have a three-point lead and an opportunity to get another stop."
"[Tucker] missed those two [free throws]. He could have gone back down [the defensive end] thinking about it. That's a big play, man, to come down there and get another steal then go back to the line and make two big free throws.
"It just shows you who he is, what his career has been like. It was nice for him to get that [reward]."
Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni echoed his star players' praise of Tucker. "Everybody contributes something. PJ, for the whole game, was unbelievable," he said.
"It comes down to making big plays in big moments. I have extreme confidence that they will get it done."
The Rockets will play either the Golden State Warriors or the Los Angeles Clippers in the Western Conference semi-finals.
