The ending to the Houston Rockets’ 105-103 win over the New York Knicks on Monday night was filled with controversy after referee Jacyn Goble called a foul on Jalen Brunson for his closeout on Aaron Holiday’s Hail Mary attempt with the clock winding down and the game tied at 103. That call was a bailout, as Holiday only threw that shot as a prayer after Jalen Green’s attempt at the rim was stuffed.
Credit must go to the unheralded Rockets guard for being at the right place at the right time. If he wasn’t in position to recover the loose ball, then the game would have gone to overtime. But there he was at the exact correct position, and in a stroke of good luck, he got the friendly whistle after there was contact from the Knicks star’s closeout.
“Just trying to get the ball and get a shot up. I saw them tip it, it came close to me so I just tried to get it. Tried to make a 3 and Jalen just ran into my chest,” Holiday said as he broke down the final play of the Rockets’ victory in his postgame presser, via Lachard Binkley of SB Nation’s The Dream Shake.
This win, however, will end up counting as one with an asterisk, although I’m sure that Rockets fans wouldn’t mind taking victories however they come. While there appeared to be some contact when Jalen Brunson went up to contest Aaron Holiday’s shot, that seemed to be minimal anyway. And that’s what crew chief Ed Malloy thought in his Pool Report, as he said that they should not have called a foul in that scenario, especially when the game’s on the line.
Nonetheless, credit must go to the Rockets for putting themselves in position to secure the win. That was the biggest difference in the ballgame. They were at the right place, at the right time for most of the night, and there was nothing more emblematic of the good fortune they had than the official’s whistle in the final possession. A win is a win, and sometimes in sports, you need luck to come out on the winning side.
More must-reads: