Antonio missing big bodies Tim

HOUSTON - Heading into a game with the San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets coach Kevin McHale had his eye on a few matchups. Fake Cowboys Jerseys . A specific one that caught his eye was getting Dwight Howard in the post.The plan worked.With San Antonio missing big bodies Tim Duncan, who was rested along with fellow veteran Manu Ginobili, and Tiago Splitter (right calf tightness), Howard dominated the interior from the opening tip, scoring 32 points and grabbing 16 rebounds in leading Houston to a 98-81 victory.We looked at some stuff (on tape) and we got him in the post, McHale said. I thought (Howard) rolled hard and got some late at the rim. He was really devastating on those high passes. Its important that he gets in a rhythm and plays. It doesnt matter who is out there playing for them, hes got to play well for us.The win runs Houstons record to a league best 6-0 while dropping San Antonios mark to 2-2.With no Duncan or Splitter inside Houston had a decided advantage down low and exploited it from the beginning, feeding Howard at every turn. Whether on the pick-and-roll, at the elbow, or on alley-oop passes, Howard was the target and had a double-double — 20 points and 12 rebounds — by halftime as he exploited a vulnerable Spurs interior defence where Matt Bonner, Jeff Ayers, and Aron Baynes struggled to keep up.We are a sum-of-the-parts team, Popovich said. We have to have all our parts to be at our best. We cant rely on one player. We have to do it as a group. If we have injuries, we need our full bench to continue to play at our best.When Howard was not scoring inside, James Harden filled the stat sheet, adding 20 points, six rebounds and six assists for the Rockets. While he had his share of points, Harden was clear after the game about the advantage of having a force inside.Its tough with the best big man in the league rolling down the paint, Harden said of Howard. Hes a lob target, and you have shooters around him. Its tough to guard it.As the Spurs struggled to keep Howard from gutting them in the middle, they had little consistency when they had the ball. They started the game sluggish, going scoreless in the first six minutes.While San Antonio rebounded and pulled to within 18-15 at the end of the first quarter, that was as close as the Spurs would get. The tough night finished with the defending NBA champs, who trailed by as many as 31, shooting just 34.4 per cent from the field.It was a bad night tonight and I couldnt hit a shot, Tony Parker, who finished with just six points, said. Defensively, we did OK, but we never got into an offensive rhythm.Cory Joseph led the Spurs with 18 points off the bench and Baynes had 12 points and 11 rebounds.TIP-INSSpurs: Marco Belinelli was an injury scratch due to a strained right groin and was replaced by Bonner. . San Antonio started 0-for-15 on 3-pointers, making their first with 7:02 to go in the third quarter, and finished 2 for 20 from beyond the arc.Rockets: Terrence Jones missed his second straight game with a leg contusion. . Patrick Beverley missed the game due to a strained hamstring and was replaced by Isaiah Canaan, who scored 12 points along with Jason Terrys 16 points. . Houston has now won six games over the Spurs dating to last season.WINNING BIGHouston has won each of its first six games by 10 points or more. According to Elias Sports Bureau, the Rockets are the first team to accomplish the feat since the 1985-86 Denver Nuggets.DEFENDING THE ARCHouston came into the game holding opponents to 29.1 per cent from beyond the arc. That number will improve after holding the Spurs to 2-for-20 shooting from 3-point range.UP NEXTSpurs: Host New Orleans on Saturday.Rockets: Host Golden State on Saturday. Cheap Cowboys Jerseys . As each game passes (each has played close with the exception of last night) it becomes clearer just how evenly matched these two teams are and how one mistake, or one bad inning, is likely to sway the result. Wholesale Cowboys Jerseys . Listen to the Rangers vs. Kings live on TSN Radio starting at 7pm et/4pm pt. You can also stream the post-game press conferences live on TSN.CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Wendell Scott earned a second NASCAR first on Wednesday: He became the first African-American driver to be elected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame. The late driver from Virginia was among the latest group of five — all drivers, another first — voted in the hall on Wednesday. Scott joins popular NASCAR champion Bill Elliott, two-time series champ Joe Weatherly, 1960 champion Rex White and 26-time race winner Fred Lorenzen. Scott competed in NASCARs top series from 1961-73. He won his only race at Speedway Park in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1963, taking the checkered flag in the 100-mile feature after starting 15th. Scott started 495 Sprint Cup events and had a 147 top 10 finishes. "I just felt like that his time was coming and he would say that too, one day its going to happen," said Scotts son, Franklin. When Scotts name was called there were enthusiastic shouts and applause from fans, officials and family members gathered at the NASCAR Hall of Fame rotunda. He was the second-leading vote getter behind Elliott from a 54-member panel, including current Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson. Scott, who died in 1990, was the first African-American driver to race fulltime in NASCARs top series. He had won more than 100 races at local tracks before stepping up to race against NASCARs best. Among Scotts legacy to the sport is the sports Drive for Diversity initiative, one of the top youth development programs for multicultural and female drivers across the motorsports industry thats been in place since 2004. "The next inductee gives me additional pride," NASCAR chairman Brian France said in introducing Scott, "Because he undoubted scaled and climbed the highest mountain." Scotts story was loosely portrayed in the 1977 movie, "Greased Lightning," where Richard Pryor starred as Scott, the one-time taxi driver from Danville, Virginia. "He said one day they are going to write a book about me," Franklin Scott said of his father. "He had great determination. He was a great ambassador for the sport." Elliott was the 1988 Sprintt Cup champion and his 44 race victories rank 16th in NASCAR history. Cowboys Jerseys China. The driver nicknamed "Awesome Bill From Dawsonville" was also the first to win the Winston Million bonus in 1985 for capturing three of NASCAR crown jewel races. When Elliotts name was called, racer son Chase patted him on the shoulder. "This is at the top of everything Ive ever done and accomplished," he said. "This is the pinnacle." Elliott said he was a bit surprised when he was called first and thanked those who helped him achieve what he had in racing. "You look at all of the people to be nominated and you try to put things into perspective. And bam, you are the first name announced and its like, holy mackerel what just happened," he said. Modified champion Jerry Cook was sixth, car owner Robert Yates seventh and the late driver and announcer Benny Parsons eighth. The five inductees will be enshrined at ceremonies on January 30th. Hall of Famer Richard Petty, among the voters, said there were few clear cut people on the list of 20. "I had my thoughts and others had theirs, but nobody said this is the guy that needs to get in," Petty said. "That was different than past years." Weatherly, who died in 1964, won 25 races in NASCARs premiere series including those back-to-back championships in 1962 and 1963. White raced from 1956-64, winning 28 times in 233 events including six races during his championship season in 1960. Lorenzen started as a mechanic in NASCAR in 1960, but became a driver by the end of the year. He won the first three of his 26 races the next season. In 1963, Lorenzen had a stretch of dominance like few others when he won eight of 16 races entered. At one point, he led 1,679 of the possible 1,953 laps run. Series matriarch Anne Bledsoe France was honoured with the inaugural Landmark Award. She was the wife of NASCAR founding father, Bill France, and grandmother of current CEO and chairman Brian France. Anne B. France served as secretary and treasurer of NASCAR. AP Sports Writer Steve Reed contributed to this report. ' ' '