Rockets land in Seattle

Houston is the fifth seed in the Western Conference playoff race, and is just a half game behind No. 4 Utah. On Sunday, Tracy McGrady poured in 40 points, pulled down eight rebounds and dished out 10 assists to lead the Rockets to 112-106 win over the Sacramento Kings at ARCO Arena.

McGrady, who didn’t play in the previous game due to a back injury, shot 14- of-28 from the field and 9-of-12 from the foul line for the Rockets, who snapped a three-game skid.

Yao Ming and Luther Head both contributed 18 points for Houston, which swept all three games from Sacramento this season.

The Rockets are a solid 22-16 on the road this season. They will wrap up the swing against rookie Brandon Roy and the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday at the Rose Garden.

Seattle returns home after a solid victory on the road. Rashard Lewis registered 35 points and helped lead the SuperSonics to an improbable come from behind 106-103 victory over the Northwest Division champion Utah Jazz at the EnergySolutions Arena.

Lewis also collected a team-high eight rebounds for Seattle, which snapped a four-game losing skid. Earl Watson added 15 points and nine assists for the SuperSonicsSonics, while Nick Collison netted 14 points in the victory.

The SuperSonics are 20-19 at home this season. After tonight’s contest, they will embark on a three-game road trip before wrapping up the season against the Dallas Mavericks on April 18th at KeyArena. Seattle will visit Phoenix, Portland and the Lakers on the upcoming swing.

Houston is 2-0 against the SuperSonics this season. The Rockets won a pair of contests over Seattle at the Toyota Center, and have won eight of the last nine contests in the series.

The Rockets have won four of their last five at Seattle.