Rockets out for three wins in three tries vs. Pelicans

When Ime Udoka took the coaching job with the Houston Rockets in the offseason, he saw third-year scoring guard Jalen Green as a candidate for all-around improvement.

The process has been gradual, with Green recently turning the corner in one specific area: rebounding.

That tool could come in handy when the Rockets play host to the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday. Houston has won the first two matchups between the teams this season.

In the Rockets' 135-119 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, Green paired a career-high 12 rebounds with a game-high 34 points. It marked the third consecutive double-double for Green, who will turn 22 on Feb. 9. Previously, Green had never secured more than eight rebounds in a game.

Over the past three games, Green is averaging 29.7 points and 10.7 rebounds for the Rockets. His double-double barrage started after he scored 29 points without a rebound in a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers last Wednesday.

"We've talked to him about it and showed him a lot of film of him standing and kind of watching (teammates) fighting one-on-one down there," Udoka said. "Go clean it up. It's an effort and focus thing that he's really bought into lately, and you can see it with the numbers."

With Green on the glass, the Rockets feel as though it could fuel their transition offense and spur easier opportunities to score. With Fred VanVleet and Alperen Sengun in their starting lineup, the Rockets don't offer a hastened pace, but Green attacking the backboards mitigates some of those issues. With high-flying rookies Cam Whitmore and Amen Thompson, Houston is a much faster outfit.

Houston recorded 29 fast-break points against the Lakers. The handiwork on the glass, particularly from Green, played a pivotal role.

Finally with optimal health, the Pelicans appeared to have turned a corner when they won nine of 13 games after a victory lasty week over the Utah Jazz. But New Orleans was handed a pair of blowout defeats during a back-to-back against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Milwaukee Bucks. That preceded a 118-112 road setback at Boston on Monday.

The Pelicans opened a 17-point first-half lead on the Celtics before coming unraveled down the stretch of the fourth quarter. The Pelicans committed half of their 12 turnovers against Boston in that final period, surrendering 37 points.

The stop in Houston is the third game of a four-game road trip for New Orleans, part of a larger stretch of eight road games over a nine-game span.

For the Pelicans and whatever has ailed them of late, finding a solution soon is paramount.

"I'm sure some of it is mental because we're having mental breakdowns during the last five minutes," Pelicans coach Willie Green said. "But we'll continue to work on it, watch film on it, execute in practice. That's the area that we know we have to grow.

"When the games go to another level, we have to meet that challenge. We fell a little short."