ESPN NBA

By John Hollinger

ATLANTA – It took 47 minutes and 59.3 seconds, but the Hawks finally found the Rockets’ Achilles heel. And fittingly for a team named after birds, it was in the air.

Josh Smith rose higher than any Houston player could hope to reach and slammed home Mike Bibby’s miss, allowing the home side to escape with a 105-103 win over a physical, tough Rockets team that continues to stun opponents with how hard they play.

“We can cover for everything else, but if there’s a play to be made at ten feet we’re in trouble,” said one Rocket, and unfortunately that was the play that needed to be made. Houston players and coaches signaled for basket interference after Smith’s putback, but replays showed it was a good basket.

Until that point, however, Houston’s gritty play unnerved the Hawks – particularly by bludgeoning Atlanta on the boards. In one 11-minute stretch of the third quarter, the Rockets only scored two points on their first shot attempt of a possession. But they battled their way to a staggering 15 second-chance points in that stretch, finishing the game with 20 offensive boards and 29 second-chance points

"That was a scrappy, scrappy team and they played very physical," said Jamal Crawford.

“Oh man, they played hard,” said Marvin Williams, “Their bigs aren’t very big, Chuck Hayes isn’t a tall guy, but they work hard, they pound the boards.”

In a departure from the Hawks’ usual formula in racking up a league-best 11-2 record, the key to the victory was Williams. He had a breakout game with 29 points and nine rebounds to make up for rough nights from Smith – until his game-winner – and Joe Johnson. Williams came in shooting only 38.9% on the year and had scored double figures just once in his past five starts, but said GM Rick Sund had been encouraging him to stay aggressive and look for his shots.

“I’ve been here every morning at 8 o’clock shooting, so thankfully it paid off tonight,” said Williams. “My job is to defend and rebound, and shoot when I have the opportunity.”

Oh, and if you're looking for any Tracy McGrady drama from this game, move along. The Rockets forward worked out with trainers before the game but never donned a full uniform, while Rick Adelman admitted the two had a difference of opinion about his return date. The Rockets have been steadfast since September that McGrady would be reevaluated after a Nov. 23 MRI, and Adelman noted they hadn't practiced in ten days so it was tough to know what McGrady's fitness level might be.