HOUSTON — The Rockets carried an eight-game winning streak into their April 10 matchup with the Timberwolves, and they did it with more than momentum on their side. Houston had beaten the Philadelphia 76ers 113-102 the night before, and oddsmakers still had the Rockets favored at home on Friday night.
The bigger edge may have been the race around them. Houston was fighting for positioning between the No. 3 and No. 5 seed in the Western Conference, while Minnesota had already locked up No. 6. That made the game matter differently for each team: for the Rockets, it was about chasing a better path into the postseason; for the Timberwolves, it was about stopping a slide that had left them 1-4 over their previous five games, with the only win coming against the Pacers.
Amen Thompson was one of the clearest reasons Houston kept climbing. The guard had gone over 17.5 points in five straight games entering the matchup, and he had done it in 17 of his last 22 games since February 28. Over that stretch, Thompson averaged 19.8 points per game, well above his 18.0-point season average. He was also coming into the night at 14.1 points per game on the season, a number that underscored how sharply his scoring had risen in recent weeks.
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There was recent history here, too. Houston had lost 110-108 in overtime in Minnesota last month, a game that ended with 218 total points and showed how thin the margin could be between the teams. The first meeting this season went the Rockets’ way as a 110-105 result, giving Houston proof that it could handle Minnesota when the game tightened late. On April 10, the Rockets were also working through the second half of a back-to-back, which makes their eight-game run more impressive and more fragile at the same time.
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The tension in this matchup was plain. Houston entered with the better form and the greater incentive, but it also carried the load of a back-to-back and the memory of a one-possession loss in Minneapolis. Minnesota, already secure in the No. 6 spot, had less to chase but plenty to repair. That combination made the Timberwolves Vs Rockets game less about standings alone than about whether Houston could keep its pace while Minnesota tried to halt a skid before the playoffs.
