Clint Capela Shines with 23 Points in Rockets’ 132-101 Win Over Grizzlies
Clint Capela shined for Houston, posting a season-high 23 points and 13 rebounds. The Rockets closed the regular season with a 132-101 victory over Memphis.
Game recap
Houston dominated from the start and built a large lead. The 132-101 final marked a convincing win for the Rockets.
Capela made his first career three-pointer early in the fourth quarter. He had missed his first seven career attempts before the make.
Rockets lineup and key contributions
Several Houston stars sat out the finale. Kevin Durant, Amen Thompson, Alperen Sengun and Jabari Smith Jr. did not play.
Tari Eason, Reed Sheppard and Josh Okogie started and played through the third quarter. Eason scored 20 points and added eight assists.
Sheppard contributed 19 points and finished the season as the only Rocket to appear in all 82 games. Jae’Sean Tate added 13 points off the bench.
Veteran Jeff Green logged 24 minutes and scored six points. Capela, a 12th-season center, celebrated after his long-awaited three.
Memphis issues and season finish
The Grizzlies finished a disappointing 25-57 campaign. They dressed only eight players for the game.
Dariq Whitehead paced Memphis with a career-high 26 points. Rayan Rupert added 21 points.
Memphis started Toby Okani and Whitehead. Both had signed 10-day contracts on April 3.
Veteran milestones and series history
Forty-year-old Taj Gibson played 19 minutes and scored four points for Memphis. He and 39-year-old Jeff Green were among the league’s oldest players this season.
Those two are among seven players aged 39 or older to appear this year. Sunday marked the 30th regular-season meeting between the franchises, which first met in 2010.
Playoff implications
The win completed a 4-0 sweep of Memphis for Houston, their first season sweep over the Grizzlies since 2009-10. The Rockets secured the fifth seed in the Western Conference.
Houston will open the first-round series against the fourth-seeded Los Angeles Lakers next weekend. The opener will be played in Los Angeles.
Reporting by Filmogaz.com.
