Through the first 11 minutes of the first quarter Sunday in Game 1 between the Utah Jazz and Houston Rockets, the Jazz had their struggles getting going offensively, thanks in good part to being without starting point guard Ricky Rubio as he deals with a hamstring injury, but stayed within striking distance of the team that finished with by far the NBA’s best record in the regular season.
But as the Rockets have proved many times throughout the season, they can score in a hurry, as they closed the final 60 seconds of the frame on an 8-2 run to turn a 26-19 lead into a 34-21 advantage and didn’t look back in their 110-96 win.