Bucks, Rockets lose as regular season nears

Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian both failed to deliver victories in their preseason games yesterday with only a week to go before the regular season begins.

Yi once again scored in double digits, netting 12 points to go along with three rebounds in the Bucks' 114-102 loss to the Denver Nuggets. Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets suffered a 109-107 double overtime loss to the Memphis Grizzlies as Yao only managed 10 points.

Yi, the sixth overall selection in the 2007 NBA draft, shot 5-for-8 from the field in 24 minutes, but had to see his team lose to the Nuggets for the second consecutive time.

"It was a tough game because we didn't do a good job on transition," said Yi, who had his first double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds in the Bucks' 106-97 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday. "I think I played at my level, and I know it is not realistic for me to expect double-doubles every night."

Coach Larry Kryskowiak is tightening his rotation as the regular season draws near. With Yi averaging around 20 minutes per game in the preseason, chances are likely that he will see plenty of playing time in regular season.

The Bucks agreed that the team still has plenty of work to do: "On everything," guard Michael Redd said.

The Bucks, who trailed by six at halftime and by 13 in the third quarter, drew to within one early in the fourth but got no closer.

Forward Charlie Villanueva came off the bench to lead the Bucks with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Villanueva made nine of 16 shots and handed out five assists. Redd added 19 points for the Bucks and Desmond Mason scored 16. The Bucks shot 40.7 percent and turned the ball over 18 times.

Allen Iverson led Denver with 21 points. Five others scored in double figures for the Nuggets, who shot over 50 percent for most of the night and finished at 48.6 percent.

Elsewhere, Yao and Tracy McGrady each made 4 of 11 shots, each scoring 10 points. Shane Battier, who had 19 points in Houston's previous game, had only two on Tuesday, making just one of eight shots.

"I didn't think we played well all night long," Rockets coach Rick Adelman said. "In the first half, we defended well, but we missed a lot of shots. We didn't have the energy and for whatever reason, we weren't ready to play."

The game went into overtime when Memphis guard Casey Jacobsen hit a three-pointer with 11.2 seconds left, as Houston's Steve Novak missed his three-point attempt at the buzzer.

Steve Francis scored on a drive, giving the Rockets an 85-84 lead with 58.2 seconds left. Carl Landry then made two free throws to give the Rockets a three-point lead before Jacobsen's bucket.

Francis scored on two more drives in the first overtime, then hit a fade-away jumper from seven feet, finishing with 13 points, five rebounds and five assists before fouling out. When he passed to Novak for a jumper, the Rockets seemed to have the win. But Andre Brown's game-tying dunk sent the game into another extra period.

The Rockets built a quick six-point lead in the second overtime, but did not score again. Kyle Lowry tipped in his own miss at the buzzer to give Memphis the win.

"It was just an ugly game and nothing really went right for both sides," McGrady said. "When you're not making shots, you have to find some ways to make stops and get yourself going. We really didn't do that."

China Daily/Agencies

(China Daily 10/25/2007 page22)