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Rockets center Christian Wood had 20 points, 15 rebounds and four blocked shots on Saturday as Houston (2-2) won their second straight home game against the Sacramento Kings, 102-94 (score from the box).
Wood also showed an ability to play crucial minutes late in the game without fail. Despite his fifth foul in the third quarter, Wood returned at 8:00 am of the fourth and played the remainder of the game without committing a sixth foul (which would have disqualified him). His presence and mobility as a tall athletic 6-foot-10-inch man has proven essential to Houston’s defensive plan.
In all, the Rockets limited the Kings (3-3) to 30 points in the second half – 17 in the third quarter and 13 in the fourth. This made a defensive turnaround after giving up 64 in the first half.
On offense, Wood scored 20 or more points for a fourth straight game to start his career at Houston (fifth if including preseason). He made a pair of 3 pointers early in the game, then regularly provided a lob presence for game keeper John Wall in pick-and-roll occasions.
Despite being without All-Star goaltender James Harden (sprained ankle), the punch from Wood, Wall (28 points) and Eric Gordon (21) was enough to lift the Rockets above 100 for a fourth consecutive game.
For the 2020-21 season to date, Wood is now averaging 23.8 points (55.7% FG), 10.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game. He ranks in the NBA’s top 15 in those categories, and if maintained, those numbers could absolutely put the 25-year-old in contention for an All-Star spot.
Wood and the Rockets will return to action on Monday with a home division game against rival Dallas. The Toyota Center board is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CST, as Houston wraps up a three-game home trip.
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