From Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, Cleveland
Australia’s Jock Landale has declared Houston as being a genuine playoff team this season after beating the side with the equal-best record in the NBA for the second time in the space of a week.
He may not have played any minutes but his Rockets inflicted the third-straight defeat on the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Playing in 21 games throughout 2024-25, the Aussie watched from the bench as Houston maintained second place in the Western Conference standings, six wins behind the Oklahoma City Thunder.
But it wasn’t without having to hold off a major fight back late in the game, when a Rockets’ lead of 16 points midway through the final quarter, soon became tied with two minutes on the clock.
The game went down to the wire, with Houston victorious 135-131 after being sent to the foul line multiple times in the dying minutes.
“Cleveland is a great team. That’s the real test for us, battling with the best of them,” Landale told The Roar.
“Early on in our season, we saw that the teams at the bottom of both conferences (last year) are really ramping up our season in terms of the competitive nature against our opponents.
“The Cavs are a team that really moves the ball and has a high-octane offence and we need experience against teams that move the ball because of our defensive style of play, it can sometimes break down when the ball pings around.
“One-on-one, we’re very good defensively, but can we string it together and have good rhythm when that breaks down? The last couple of games have shown that not only we can defend the best, but also band together and defend the whole team.”
Jock Landale. (Photo by Jack Gorman/Getty Images)
It was the second victory for Houston over the Cavaliers in the space of four days, after a one-point win at the Toyota Center in Houston mid-week, and Landale says that being able to beat a team with 36 wins from 45 matches is an impressive effort in the context of the season.
“The boys did well, I think tough games like that kind of help us grow in the long run and can take us forward into the playoffs,” he said.
“Being a young group we kind of need that experience and close games, so it is invaluable for us.
“I’d say it’s definitely realistic for us (making playoffs). Everything we have done over the past couple of years is towards building an appearance there again and anytime that we can feature in a playoff series and have that as a young group – a lot of the guys are just 20-21 years old – again it’s invaluable for a group going forward.
“For us, the next couple of games are important to iron out the mistakes and then make the necessary adjustments to beat the best of them.”
The Rockets have played 44 of their 82 games this season, and remain on the road for the next three games against Boston, Atlanta and Memphis.
Last year, Houston won exactly half of their games across the season with 41. Already from 44 games, they have 30 wins and Landale says seeing the growth this year has been fantastic.
“It’s just experience in the system that is in play,” Landale explained.
“There are always growing pains when you have a young group, and you have a coach like Ime (Udoka) who is big on details. It can be a high-stress environment for some people.
“So just getting experience under that is important – especially growing through that is what helps a group.
“Personally, I have just been developing wherever I can, particularly the longevity of my career; my body is important and then it’s just fitting in wherever I can.”
This game could have featured two more Aussies on the roster with Jack McVeigh (Houston) and Luke Travers (Cleveland) signing two-way contracts meaning they play in G-Leagues, but remain options for their NBA sides should there be an opportunity for a call-up.
Landale couldn’t speak highly of his Aussie teammate, who is averaging over 31 minutes and 16 points for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, and hopes he gets to return to the Rockets’ main team soon – adding that all of the Boomers teammates are having great seasons in the NBA this year after their Olympics campaign.
“Jack has been doing a good job down in the G-League. He is a phenomenal teammate, phenomenal player, great shooter and someone we value a lot – so every time we see him up here is a bonus for everyone,” Landale said.
“I’d say the Olympics has always helped Aussies grow. Anytime you play in the offseason you get a leg up over other players in the NBA that don’t get to do so.
“So you see a lot of players come in after they have had an Olympics campaign or World Cup campaign and they string together in their professional career.
“If you look at the top dogs across the league right now, it’s usually those who have had a good Olympics campaign.
“So it’s just that extra experience coming in almost in playoff shape at the start of the season is an advantage.”
Late fightback not enough to save the Cavaliers
On their home floor and in front of a vocal crowd, Cleveland took an early six-point lead before the visitors hit back with two long-range threes from Fred VanVleet to hit the front – and from there they didn’t look back.
Things were starting to look more comfortable for the Rockets in the first quarter. Shooting at 61.9% from the field, they had a 33-27 lead at quarter time.
Another big difference that would continue into the second quarter was Houston’s edge in rebounding with 11-8 in the first term, with the Cavs managing just three at the offensive end.
The home side tried lifting the pace in the second quarter, down by eight, but that’s where the sloppy mistakes happened.
A bad pass from Darius Garland followed by a lost-ball turnover made it tough to impose any offensive rhythm on the court. But a string of Rockets misses allowed the Cavs to close to within one point.
The tight deficit was short-lived, however, as Houston ended the half with a 23-10 run for a 14-lead at the main break.
The visitors’ advantage extended to 18 after the break before Cleveland began clawing back with some entertaining three-pointers and an epic dunk from Donovan Mitchell that rocked the stadium.
Garland was red-hot in the second half, quickly going from just 12 points to 23, including three from beyond the arc – and the difference dropped into single figures.
But in almost a mirror image of the second quarter, Houston regained control, pushing the margin to a game-high lead of 19 points late in the third quarter.
Sensationally, the Cavs produced an amazing crowd-igniting comeback in the final quarter, levelling the scores.
But the tactic of intentionally giving away fouls came back to bite them as the Rockets held their nerve from the free-throw line to complete a four-point win – despite the Cavaliers having the two highest pointscorers in the game; Garland (39) and Mitchell (33).