Rockets' second-half collapse to Pels leads to third loss in four games

New Orleans Pelicans forward Trey Murphy III dribbles against Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Rockets' second-half collapse to lowly Pelicans leads to third loss in four games

By Andrew Wright | Last updated Dec 18, 2025 11:31 PM ET

Every elite NBA team is going to lose games that they more than likely have no business losing. That was the case in New Orleans on Thursday as the Houston Rockets (16-8) fell 133-128 in overtime to the New Orleans Pelicans (6-22).

The problem, though, is that Houston led New Orleans by as many as 25 points in the second half.

The collapse for the Rockets was their largest of the season and gave Houston its third loss in four games.

What exactly led to the collapse?

The Rockets scored 67 points in the first half before managing just 61 in the second half and overtime. Defensively, Houston allowed 88 in the second half and overtime after allowing just 45 points in the first half.

Houston suffers their first losing streak of the season — a shocking 133-128 overtime loss to New Orleans, a game in which they led by 25.

Seven of the Rockets’ eight losses this season have been in the clutch.
— Kelly Iko (@KellyIko) December 19, 2025

Saddiq Bey sparked the Pelicans' comeback

Saddiq Bey played a major role in the 25-point comeback win for the Pelicans. He finished with a game-high 29 points, 17 of which came in the fourth quarter and overtime. That included a fallaway jumper that gave New Orleans a four-point lead with just 29.7 seconds remaining.

Trey Murphy III also played a key role with 27 points, continuing his red-hot December that's seen him average 25.5 points per game.

SADDIQ.

SADDIQ BEY. pic.twitter.com/zJ86hcSD0s
— Steve Jones (@stevejones20) December 19, 2025

Rockets must clean up clutch-time performances

As the tweet above shows, seven of eight Rockets' losses this season have come in clutch game. For a team that has aspirations of a deep playoff run, that will certainly be something that needs to be fixed.

That will start with the veteran leadership of Kevin Durant, Steven Adams and others to step up during the grueling months of the season to help prepare Houston for the postseason.

Andrew Wright

Andrew "Dew" Wright graduated from Charleston Southern University with a degree in Communication Studies. He is a lifelong Chicago Cubs and Washington Commanders fan.

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