Taipei, Jan. 16 (CNA) Jeremy Lin reached a new milestone in his NBA career Wednesday when he dished out his 500th assist in a Houston Rockets' home game against the Los Angeles Clippers.
With five minutes and 32 seconds left in the second quarter, Lin passed the ball to help his Argentine teammate Carlos Delfino score a three-pointer, which was Lin's fourth assist in the game and his 500th throughout his three-season NBA career.
Lin's career milestone, however, was overshadowed by his team's 117-109 defeat by the Clippers.
It was also the Rockets' fourth straight loss, the team's longest losing streak so far this season.
Lin performed his fifth double-double of the season during the game, with 12 points and 10 assists.
It was also the season's sixth game in which he posted a double-digit number of assists. In all, Lin, the first NBA player of Taiwanese descent, has so far accumulated 506 assists, taking just 103 games to join the NBA's 500-assist club.
The Rockets led by one point at half time, but their fortunes changed in the third quarter on a 32-18 run.
"We just came out flat and didn't have the energy we needed and then they (Clippers) got it going on offense and pushed us around in the post and then the guards didn't help and didn't stop the cutters and so they got a lot of points in the paint," Lin said of what happened in the third quarter that changed the game.
On what went wrong offensively for the Rockets, Lin said: "Honestly, I think we just couldn't get a rhythm."
While the Clippers were getting everything in the second half, Lin said the Rockets were not getting any stops.
"I think we just lacked the ball movement and the energy and the thrust and pace that we played with in the first half," Lin said afterward.
Throughout the game, the Rockets turned the ball over many times, missed many free throws and had to settle for long jumpers. The team scored a season-high 37 three-pointers.
Clippers backup point guard Jamal Crawford was the top scorer, posting a season-high 30 points, half of which were scored in the last quarter. His brilliant performance eclipsed Lin's 500-assist milestone.
The Rockets will next face the Dallas Mavericks in a road game Thursday (Taipei time).
(By Lung Po-an and Sofia Wu)
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