Energy from Danuel House Jr. sparks Rockets comeback over the Bulls

The Houston Rockets have had their share of misfortunes this season, and on Wednesday night during the first quarter of the game against the Chicago Bulls, it seemed as if they were headed right back down that road.

Rookie Jalen Green came out very aggressive to begin the game. That is the message that Rockets head coach Stephen Silas has been preaching for him to do over the past couple of weeks.

Green’s 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field excited the crowd of over 16,000 in attendance at the Toyota Center. It also kept Houston in the game against the Bulls, who have played well to begin the season.

Things seemed to be going the Rockets way until Green went down with under two minutes left in the quarter after being fouled going to the basket for a layup. After hitting both free throw attempts to give Houston a one-point lead, Green headed back to the locker room and never returned after being ruled out of the game with a left leg injury.

“Here we go again,” had to be racing through coach Silas’s mind. He had just inserted point guard Kevin Porter Jr. back in the lineup after missing three games due to injury, and now he loses another contributor in the backcourt. Houston went down by 13-points in the second quarter and trailed 64-55 at halftime.

One huge blemish for the Rockets this season has been inefficient third-quarter play. All that changed once coach Silas looked down his bench and called on Danuel House Jr., a player he knew he could count on to give him valuable minutes with Green being out of the lineup.

What was not anticipated was the offensive outburst by House, who finished the quarter with 10-points on his way to a season-high 18-points to help Houston break their 15-game losing streak by defeating the Bulls 118-113.

“Energy and effort,” House said was the difference in the third quarter. “The team played with more aggression on the offensive and defensive ends of the court.”

Coach Silas was very impressed by House being ready when called upon:

He had been in and out of the rotation, out of the rotation, played only eight minutes last game. I wanted to get him out there so he could continue to believe that his work would pay off. Tonight, he was the difference-maker. He made four three-pointers, drove to the hoop, free throws, and his energy. He was great.

Houston will welcome the Charlotte Hornets to the Toyota Center on Saturday hoping to secure consecutive victories for the first time this season.