In the aftermath of a disappointing defeat, Chinese center Yao Ming had something enjoyable to contemplate - a place in next month's National Basketball Association All-Star Game.
Mike Bibby scored 28 points and sparked a late rally to give Sacramento a 99-94 triumph over Houston here on Wednesday before a season-high crowd of 18,209 that included sports and music celebrities here for Sunday's Super Bowl.
A similar star-studded crowd will attend the NBA All-Star Game next month in Los Angeles, where Yao figures to play for the Western Conference even if he is not voted into a starting role when balloting is announced on Thursday.
Houston guard Steve Francis and Los Angeles Lakers stars Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal are expected to lead the West.
"You don't have to think about what losing is like with teammates like that," said Yao, who was elected to a starting spot last year as an NBA rookie.
O'Neal had a slight lead on Yao entering the final days of voting for starting center honors and O'Neal has enjoyed a better statistical season, although Yao has been hot in recent games while "Shaq" has been injured.
"I would like to thank everybody who voted," Yao said. "I haven't thought about it. I'm just waiting."
Yao definitely will play for the sophomore squad in the NBA's Rookie Game on February 13, two days before the All-Star Game. Yao's defensive skills will be tested by teen prodigy LeBron James and Denver star Carmelo Anthony.
The Sacramento Kings, who have the NBA's top scoring offense, stole a page from the playbook of Houston's NBA shooting defense leaders and frustrated the Rockets by forcing 24 turnovers and keeping Steve Francis to 3-of-17 shooting.
"It was a gift," Yao said. "We lost a lot of opportunities. When we were trying to get the ball into the middle, it was too crowded and we were forcing it. I thought we shot pretty well. It was just crowded in the middle."
Yao scored 12 points and pulled down 11 rebounds but surrendered a game-high five turnovers as his father, Yao Zhiyuan, and mother, former Chinese national team player Fang Fengdi, watched from the grandstands.
"They played great," Yao said. "Most of it was our own fault but they created great pressure at both ends of the court. Our problem was too many turnovers."
Double-teaming Yao and crowding the basket were central parts of Sacramento coach Rick Adelman's strategy.
"We didn't want Yao to get position deep and we wanted to swarm him and not let him shoot the ball," he said. "It helped us create a lot of turnovers.
"This was huge for us. It was a good win on a long road trip. We stayed with it and got real competitive in the second half."
Yao had no complaints about referee's calls despite a pair of early second-half fouls and fast-fingered rivals that kept him cautious.
"I was a little hesitant," Yao said. "I kept seeing people come to steal the ball."
Dejected Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy lamented the same errors he saw the team making in November when the season began. "Turnovers are a problem every night with us," he said. "It's not only you not scoring, you give the other team a great opportunity to score. That's like spotting Sacramento 18, 20 points advantage.
"Repetitive mistakes are really debilitating," he said.
Houston led 83-80 with seven minutes to play and the Kings had never led by more than a point.
List of starters in the All-star Game :
Eastern Conference
F - Vince Carter, Toronto
F - Jermaine O'Neal, Indiana
C - Ben Wallace, Detroit
G - Allen Iverson, Philadelphia
G - Tracy McGrady, Orlando
Coach: Rick Carlisle, Indiana
Western Conference
F - Tim Duncan, San Antonio
F - Kevin Garnett, Minnesota
C - Yao Ming, Houston
G - Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers
G - Steve Francis, Houston
Coach: Flip Saunders, Minnesota
(sources: China Daily and CRI January 30, 2004)
