Doesn’t look good for Houston

They also trail New Orleans/Oklahoma City and Utah, which are also on the outside looking in at the postseason.

Six of Houston’s final nine games this season are on the road.

On Tuesday, two of the most disappointing teams in the NBA square off when the Seattle SuperSonics welcome the Rockets to KeyArena. It is the fourth and final meeting of the season between the clubs. Houston won the three previous contests, as it won a pair of games at the Toyota Center and defeated the Sonics, 104-98, on December 15th at KeyArena.

Houston, which has won six in a row against the SuperSonics, has won four straight after losing its last two at Seattle.

The Rockets play the second of a six-game road trip against Seattle. On Sunday, Kobe Bryant posted 43 points and six assists to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 104-88 win over Houston at the Staples Center.

Yao Ming contributed 33 points and 16 boards, and Rafer Alston netted 12 and dished out six assists in the loss to the Lakers for the Rockets, who had a two-game winning streak halted and have lost eight of their last 11 contests overall.

Houston is 17-18 on the road this season. The Rockets will also visit Portland, Golden State, Sacramento and Utah on the current trip. Their final game away from home is against the Denver Nuggets on April 17th at the Pepsi Center.

The Rockets remaining home games are against Minnesota, Memphis and San Antonio.