http://s****ts.yahoo.com/nba/recap;_ylt=AnLjqjLasfdqRgNeRyLe2TO8vLYF?gid=2005
122710&prov=ap
HOUSTON (AP) -- The Utah Jazz got an assist from Tracy McGrady's fiancee
in
their win over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night.
McGrady scored 21 points in the first half, then left the arena when he
learned his fiancee, Clerenda Harris, was going into labor at a local
hospital.
The Rockets crumbled without him, and the Jazz snapped a three-game road
losing streak by dominating the second half in their 82-74 victory.
"Family comes first," Utah's Andrei Kirilenko said. "I just want to
congratulate Tracy. It's good for him, but it was not good for the Houston
Rockets."
Mehmet Okur had 20 points, 17 rebounds and a decisive 3-pointer to lead
the
Jazz back from a five-point halftime deficit.
"I don't know what happened," Okur said of McGrady's abrupt exit. "We
don't
worry about those things. It was a good win for us on the road."
Rockets spokesman Nelson Luis said after the game that Harris gave birth
to
a boy, and the couple named him Laymen Lamar.
Houston coach Jeff Van Gundy downplayed McGrady's absence.
"We didn't lose because he wasn't there, we lost because we were inept
offensively," he said. "We have professional players out there, so we have
no excuses."
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