Standings November 12, 1977

First
W L Pct. GB Home Road OT 3 Less 10 More L10 Streak Ahead Half Behind Half Tied Half Ahead 3 Behind 3 Tied 3 >= 100 Opp >= 100 vs >= .500 Lead FG% Lead Reb Fewer TOV
Philadelphia 76ers 6 2 .750 - 5-0 1-2 0-0 0-0 5-2 6-2 W 3 5-1 1-1 0-0 6-0 0-2 0-0 6-2 5-2 3-2 5-1 2-0 5-0
New York Knicks 6 3 .667 ½ 4-1 2-2 0-0 1-0 4-1 6-3 W 2 6-0 0-3 0-0 6-0 0-3 0-0 5-3 4-3 2-1 4-0 5-1 2-1
Buffalo Braves 4 5 .444 2½ 3-1 1-4 0-0 1-0 2-3 4-5 W 2 1-0 3-5 0-0 3-0 1-5 0-0 4-4 3-5 2-3 2-0 2-0 2-2
Boston Celtics 3 5 .375 3 2-1 1-4 0-0 1-1 1-3 3-5 W 1 2-1 1-4 0-0 3-0 0-5 0-0 3-3 2-4 1-1 2-0 3-1 0-2
New Jersey Nets 2 6 .250 4 1-4 1-2 0-0 1-1 1-4 2-6 L 3 1-1 1-5 0-0 2-0 0-6 0-0 2-3 1-6 0-3 2-2 2-3 1-1

Second
W L Pct. GB Home Road OT 3 Less 10 More L10 Streak Ahead Half Behind Half Tied Half Ahead 3 Behind 3 Tied 3 >= 100 Opp >= 100 vs >= .500 Lead FG% Lead Reb Fewer TOV
Atlanta Hawks 5 3 .625 - 3-1 2-2 0-0 1-2 4-1 5-3 W 1 3-2 1-1 1-0 5-0 0-2 0-1 5-2 3-3 0-0 5-0 2-0 4-1
New Orleans Jazz 5 4 .556 ½ 3-3 2-1 0-0 1-1 3-0 5-4 W 1 5-1 0-3 0-0 5-1 0-3 0-0 5-4 5-4 1-2 2-0 4-2 4-4
San Antonio Spurs 6 5 .545 ½ 3-1 3-4 0-0 1-2 3-2 6-4 L 2 5-1 0-4 1-0 6-1 0-4 0-0 5-3 2-4 1-3 4-4 4-0 3-3
Washington Bullets 3 4 .429 1½ 0-2 3-2 1-1 2-0 0-3 3-4 L 1 3-2 0-2 0-0 3-0 0-4 0-0 3-4 3-4 0-2 3-1 3-2 1-1
Cleveland Cavaliers 4 6 .400 2 2-4 2-2 0-1 2-1 2-4 4-6 W 1 2-2 2-4 0-0 3-1 0-5 1-0 4-4 3-6 0-5 3-3 1-3 2-1
Houston Rockets 3 6 .333 2½ 3-3 0-3 0-0 1-2 0-3 3-6 L 3 1-3 2-3 0-0 2-1 0-5 1-0 2-6 2-6 2-2 1-1 1-1 2-5

Third
W L Pct. GB Home Road OT 3 Less 10 More L10 Streak Ahead Half Behind Half Tied Half Ahead 3 Behind 3 Tied 3 >= 100 Opp >= 100 vs >= .500 Lead FG% Lead Reb Fewer TOV
Milwaukee Bucks 7 2 .778 - 5-1 2-1 0-0 1-1 5-1 7-2 W 6 2-1 4-1 1-0 7-1 0-1 0-0 7-1 6-2 2-2 6-1 3-0 3-2
Chicago Bulls 7 4 .636 1 5-1 2-3 0-0 2-0 2-1 6-4 W 2 5-2 2-2 0-0 5-0 1-4 1-0 7-3 6-4 0-1 6-3 6-2 1-1
Indiana Pacers 5 3 .625 1½ 4-1 1-2 2-0 1-0 2-3 5-3 L 1 2-0 3-3 0-0 4-0 1-3 0-0 5-1 5-3 0-2 2-0 4-1 3-2
Denver Nuggets 6 5 .545 2 4-0 2-5 0-1 1-0 5-3 5-5 L 3 6-2 0-3 0-0 6-0 0-5 0-0 6-3 3-5 0-2 5-2 4-2 4-2
Detroit Pistons 4 4 .500 2½ 3-2 1-2 0-0 0-1 2-3 4-4 L 2 4-0 0-4 0-0 4-0 0-4 0-0 4-3 4-4 1-4 3-0 2-1 4-2
Kansas City Kings 3 9 .250 5½ 2-2 1-7 1-1 1-1 1-8 3-7 L 2 0-1 3-7 0-1 1-0 2-9 0-0 3-9 2-9 2-6 1-0 1-1 3-3

Fourth
W L Pct. GB Home Road OT 3 Less 10 More L10 Streak Ahead Half Behind Half Tied Half Ahead 3 Behind 3 Tied 3 >= 100 Opp >= 100 vs >= .500 Lead FG% Lead Reb Fewer TOV
Portland Trail Blazers 7 2 .778 - 7-0 0-2 0-0 0-1 7-0 7-2 W 5 6-0 1-2 0-0 7-0 0-2 0-0 7-1 5-2 4-1 7-1 6-0 3-1
Golden State Warriors 5 6 .455 3 3-1 2-5 0-0 2-3 2-0 4-6 L 1 5-1 0-4 0-1 4-0 1-4 0-2 5-4 4-5 1-4 4-3 4-3 2-1
Phoenix Suns 4 5 .444 3 1-2 3-3 0-0 0-1 3-3 4-5 L 1 2-1 2-3 0-1 3-1 1-4 0-0 4-4 4-5 0-4 4-1 2-0 2-0
Los Angeles Lakers 4 6 .400 3½ 2-2 2-4 0-0 0-2 3-3 4-6 L 2 4-1 0-5 0-0 4-0 0-6 0-0 4-5 2-6 0-4 3-1 3-4 2-2
Seattle Supersonics 4 8 .333 4½ 4-1 0-7 0-0 0-0 1-7 3-7 W 1 4-3 0-5 0-0 4-1 0-7 0-0 4-5 3-8 1-6 4-1 4-3 2-2

November 12, 1977 - Rockets stun 1st place Blazers

Portland comes to Houston with an 8-2 record and falls to the struggling Rockets 129-122:


Game Summary

Rockets 129, Trail Blazers 122

Portland: CALHOUN 2-3 0-0 4, DAVIS 6-9 2-2 14, DUNN 2-4 0-0 4
          GROSS 5-10 0-0 10, HOLLINS 5-11 0-0 10
          Maurice LUCAS 12-24 9-9 33, OWENS 1-6 1-2 3, STEELE 8-11 1-1 17
          TWARDZIK 3-3 1-2 7, WALTON 9-16 2-2 20
          Totals: 53-97 16-18 122

Houston: JONES 5-9 8-9 18, KUNNERT 1-5 1-2 3, KUPEC 0-0 0-0 0
         John LUCAS 4-10 0-0 8, MALONE 8-15 6-6 22, MURPHY 13-25 6-8 32
         NEWLIN 0-4 0-0 0, RATLEFF 2-4 2-2 6, REID 4-8 0-0 8
         TOMJANOVICH 15-26 2-2 32
         Totals: 52-106 25-29 129

              ==================================================
                                     1   2   3   4  Total
                     Trail Blazers  32  28  34  28    122
                     Rockets        32  39  26  32    129
              ==================================================

Fouled Out: HOLLINS

Technical Fouls: None

Flagrant Fouls: TWARDZIK

Personal Fouls: Portland 23
                Houston 14

Rebounds: Portland 50 (WALTON 13)
          Houston 54 (MALONE 17)

Assists: Portland 36 (TWARDZIK 8)
         Houston 21 (John LUCAS 8)

Steals: Portland 12 (GROSS 6)
        Houston 11 (MURPHY 3, TOMJANOVICH 3)

Turnovers: Portland 23 (OWENS 5)
           Houston 18 (JONES 5)

Blocked Shots: Portland 9 (GROSS 3, WALTON 3)
               Houston 1 (MALONE 1)

Fast Break Points: Portland 36
                   Houston 40

Points In The Paint: Portland 66
                     Houston 66

Points Off Turnovers: Portland 14
                      Houston 25

Second Chance Points: Portland 11
                      Houston 25

Biggest Lead: Portland 6
              Houston 12

Bench Scoring: Portland 35
               Houston 27

Ties: 18

Lead Changes: 4

November 10, 1977 - Hawks 114 - Rockets 109

Rockets return home to the Summit but lose to the Hawks:


Game Summary

Hawks 114, Rockets 109

Atlanta: BEHAGEN 2-10 0-0 4, BROWN 4-9 4-4 12, CHARLES 3-6 4-5 10
         CRISS 2-4 6-8 10, DREW 13-24 4-7 30, HAWES 5-9 4-4 14
         HILL 3-9 0-0 6, Fast Eddie JOHNSON 4-6 2-2 10
         Ollie JOHNSON 5-10 2-2 12, TERRY 3-4 0-0 6
         Totals: 44-91 26-32 114

Houston: JONES 6-13 0-0 12, KUNNERT 9-17 0-4 18, KUPEC 1-5 0-0 2
         LUCAS 3-11 0-0 6, MALONE 2-8 3-4 7, MURPHY 3-8 5-5 11
         NEWLIN 5-14 2-2 12, RATLEFF 3-4 0-0 6, REID 3-5 0-0 6
         TOMJANOVICH 11-27 7-7 29
         Totals: 46-112 17-22 109

              ==================================================
                                     1   2   3   4  Total
                     Hawks          27  38  21  28    114
                     Rockets        29  34  22  24    109
              ==================================================

Fouled Out: MALONE

Technical Fouls: None

Flagrant Fouls: TOMJANOVICH

Personal Fouls: Atlanta 24
                Houston 25

Rebounds: Atlanta 58 (HAWES 14)
          Houston 66 (TOMJANOVICH 18)

Assists: Atlanta 24 (HILL 7)
         Houston 27 (LUCAS 9)

Steals: Atlanta 8 (HILL 2)
        Houston 13 (LUCAS 4)

Turnovers: Atlanta 30 (HAWES 7)
           Houston 24 (MURPHY 5)

Blocked Shots: Atlanta 2 (BEHAGEN 1, DREW 1)
               Houston 5 (KUNNERT 3)

Fast Break Points: Atlanta 38
                   Houston 46

Points In The Paint: Atlanta 48
                     Houston 74

Points Off Turnovers: Atlanta 19
                      Houston 30

Second Chance Points: Atlanta 12
                      Houston 18

Biggest Lead: Atlanta 7
              Houston 8

Bench Scoring: Atlanta 44
               Houston 50

Ties: 15

Lead Changes: 13

Turnover Prone Rockets lose at Detroit

The difference in this game was 33 turnovers by the Rockets and 32 points for the Pistons off turnovers.


Game Summary

Pistons 122, Rockets 105

Houston: JONES 3-9 0-0 6, KUNNERT 5-9 0-0 10, KUPEC 0-0 0-0 0
         LUCAS 7-11 3-4 17, MALONE 6-17 5-9 17, MURPHY 9-16 2-2 20
         NEWLIN 3-7 2-2 8, RATLEFF 4-6 0-0 8, REID 5-6 1-2 11
         TOMJANOVICH 4-12 0-0 8
         Totals: 46-93 13-19 105

Detroit: CARR 6-11 1-1 13, DOUGLAS 5-9 2-3 12, EBERHARD 0-0 1-4 1
         FORD 7-16 2-2 16, LANIER 20-34 5-7 45, MONEY 5-12 2-2 12
         NORWOOD 4-10 3-6 11, POQUETTE 3-7 0-0 6, SIMPSON 2-5 0-0 4
         SKINNER 1-2 0-0 2
         Totals: 53-106 16-25 122

              ==================================================
                                     1   2   3   4  Total
                     Rockets        30  26  22  27    105
                     Pistons        35  21  32  34    122
              ==================================================

Fouled Out: REID

Technical Fouls: Houston Rockets Coach NISSALKE,Tom

Flagrant Fouls: DOUGLAS

Personal Fouls: Houston 21
                Detroit 14

Rebounds: Houston 66 (MALONE 23)
          Detroit 49 (LANIER 13)

Assists: Houston 29 (LUCAS 13)
         Detroit 29 (MONEY 10)

Steals: Houston 5 (LUCAS 2)
        Detroit 21 (CARR 6, MONEY 6)

Turnovers: Houston 33 (MALONE 9)
           Detroit 13 (CARR 4)

Blocked Shots: Houston 4 (JONES 1, LUCAS 1, MALONE 1, MURPHY 1)
               Detroit 4 (EBERHARD 1, LANIER 1, MONEY 1, POQUETTE 1)

Fast Break Points: Houston 36
                   Detroit 34

Points In The Paint: Houston 60
                     Detroit 70

Points Off Turnovers: Houston 12
                      Detroit 32

Second Chance Points: Houston 15
                      Detroit 14

Biggest Lead: Houston 5
              Detroit 17

Bench Scoring: Houston 37
               Detroit 24

Ties: 10

Lead Changes: 14

Rockets lose by 5 at Chicago

Cactus League 1977-78 Rockets replay:


Game Summary

Bulls 118, Rockets 113

Houston: JONES 3-4 1-3 7, KUNNERT 3-7 2-2 8, LUCAS 9-19 7-8 25
         MALONE 8-13 3-4 19, MURPHY 9-23 2-3 20, NEWLIN 4-11 3-4 11
         RATLEFF 3-4 1-2 7, REID 1-9 0-0 2, TOMJANOVICH 4-10 4-4 12
         WHITE 1-2 0-0 2
         Totals: 45-102 23-30 113

Chicago: ARMSTRONG 0-1 0-0 0, BOERWINKLE 1-3 2-2 4, GILMORE 10-20 10-13 30
         HOLLAND 7-19 5-6 19, JOHNSON 14-22 7-7 35, LANDSBERGER 2-4 0-0 4
         MAY 4-10 4-4 12, MENGELT 4-6 1-1 9, SHEPPARD 1-3 1-2 3
         VAN LIER 0-2 2-2 2
         Totals: 43-90 32-37 118

              ==================================================
                                     1   2   3   4  Total
                     Rockets        27  26  29  31    113
                     Bulls          32  34  28  24    118
              ==================================================

Fouled Out: REID

Technical Fouls: None

Flagrant Fouls: None

Personal Fouls: Houston 27
                Chicago 21

Rebounds: Houston 54 (MALONE 14)
          Chicago 62 (GILMORE 13, JOHNSON 13)

Assists: Houston 21 (NEWLIN 5)
         Chicago 24 (VAN LIER 10)

Steals: Houston 16 (LUCAS 5)
        Chicago 9 (GILMORE 2, JOHNSON 2, VAN LIER 2)

Turnovers: Houston 21 (MALONE 5)
           Chicago 23 (JOHNSON 5)

Blocked Shots: Houston 2 (KUNNERT 1, MALONE 1)
               Chicago 4 (JOHNSON 3)

Fast Break Points: Houston 36
                   Chicago 42

Points In The Paint: Houston 64
                     Chicago 60

Points Off Turnovers: Houston 32
                      Chicago 20

Second Chance Points: Houston 11
                      Chicago 14

Biggest Lead: Houston 5
              Chicago 18

Bench Scoring: Houston 35
               Chicago 20

Ties: 4

Lead Changes: 2

Catching Up

I plan to post game by game.  My thought that I would play a few games then post game by game isn't working too well.  So, after I catch up with this post, it will be game by game after that.

Since Houston defeated Boston 99-91 in the Summit, here is what has happened.

Houston was defeated at home vs. the Milwaukee Bucks 120-102
Houston was defeated at home vs. Phoenix 124-113
Houston defeated Golden State at home by a score of 113-111
Houston got waxed at Milwaukee 132-107

Reid's performances:

vs. Milwaukee - 10 pts. 4 reb 3 assists 30 min
vs Phoenix - 16 pts. 9 reb 5 assists 41 min
vs. Golden State 8 pts. 7 reb 4 assists 33 min
at Milwaukee - 10 pts. 5 reb 5 assists 25 min

Houston is now 3-4 and 2 games back of the Spurs

10-22-1977 - Houston 99 vs. Boston 91

The flight from Kansas City to Houston must not have been too bad.  Home cooking seemed to help the Rockets as they defeated the Celtics 99-91 before a delighted crowd at the Summit.

Moses Malone had a monster 15 point and 23 rebound night.  Rudy Tomjanovich had 29 points and 8 rebounds.  The Rockets overcame 23 points by Celtic Dave Cowens.

Robert Reid played 36 minutes and had 4 points, 4 assists and 8 rebounds.

10-21-1977 - Kings 113 vs. Rockets 110

The Rockets traveled to Kansas City for game 2 of their season.  They led most of the way but were outscored 31-26 down the stretch.  In the end they lost by 3 points.  Calvin Murphy had 36 points on the night and Moses Malone had 21 rebounds.  Robert Reid was hounded by the refs all night (finished with 5 fouls), but logged 28 minutes and had 5 points and 5 assists.  He only attempted 5 shots on the night.

10-19-1977 - Rockets 115 vs. Bulls 106

The Houston Rockets opened at home, in the Summit, versus the Chicago Bulls who were coming off an opening win.

The Rockets shot 50 pct from the floor but had to overcome an even better 56 pct from the Bulls.  In the end the Rockets pulled it out thanks to 25 points from Rudy T. and a 23 point effort from Calvin Murphy.

Robert Reid made his rookie debut.  In 23 minutes he had 8 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assist and was 4-10 from the field.

Basketball Simulations

For those interested..... the Strat-O-Matic Basketball game can be purchased at http://www.strat-o-maticmedia.com/ and the Cactus League software can be purchased at http://www.cactusdevelopment.com/

NBA History Project

We all have our favorite players.  I have long thought that, in a sense, we do not choose our favorite players, our favorite players choose us.  What I mean by that is that the reason a player appeals to us, in terms of being wrapped up in what he does on any given night and how he does over the course of his career, is not always entirely clear to us.  We just like watching and cheering for that particular player.

Well, in 1977, when I was attending Rocket games as the son of a season ticket holder, I found a new favorite player.  I ended up cheering for this player throughout the entirety of his career, from Houston, to Charlotte, to Portland and finally Philadelphia, I watched this player from beginning to end.  That player is Robert Reid.  Reid was a very good player, and played a major role on two Rockets teams that ended up in the NBA finals.  He was not, however, the marquee player on any of those teams.  He was a 6'8" forward/guard who played great defense, was a pretty decent scorer, and in his prime, was very athletic.

The reason for this blog is that I am starting a new project, using Cactus League Basketball and Strat-O-Matic basketball, where I will replay every game of Reid's career with the Houston Rockets.  I do not plan to follow him to Charlotte with this replay (I might change my mind), but I definitely want to replay his Rocket's career.  I will be posting boxscores, league standings and my own during the season thoughts.  These two basketball simulations (Cactus League and Strat) are both statistically excellent and I plan to have a lot of fun with it.  I also plan to experiment with one "what if" scenario, by putting the 81-82 Reid on the 82-83 season Rockets.  For those who remember, Reid sat out the 82-83 season.  What would he and the Rockets have done that year if he had been present?  We will find out within the realm of Cactus League or Strat basketball.

I welcome any comments or ideas as I go along.  I welcome any and all NBA fans, and would be happy during this simulation to keep you updated about your favorite players.

I will begin with the 1977-78 season, Reid's rookie year.  It was the year that I saw this rookie from St. Mary's juke left from the corner, go right base line, and jam it home with a very athletic dunk.  It was the year that that dunk solidified in a 14 year old boy's mind, "That is my favorite player!".