http://sports.tianjindaily.com.cn/images/2008-11/04/xin_281105041741450213074.jpg

上次波士顿凯特尔人队造访休斯敦时，以其固然金汤的防守力胜于客场，终结了火箭队三月间的连胜纪录。

火箭使用相同的战术制敌取得了季赛的开门红。大战在即，火箭队欲向NBA冠军队来验证其脱胎换骨的实力。

当在周二主场迎战凯特尔人时，火箭队热盼12年久违的开门四连胜。而凯特尔人队则在开赛首个客场便告失利，乘败来访。

尽管火箭赢得了NBA史上第二长的22连胜，但在三月十八与凯特尔人对垒时，姚明受伤缺阵，以94-74败北，成全了波士顿上季赛的66胜。

休斯敦后卫麦蒂追忆，“那场并不太令人失望，强壮之师挥进，痛击我们如摧枯拉朽。我从没见过那种铁板样的防守。我的意思是，如果他们每晚都象那般防守，整个NBA诸队恐怕要麻烦缠身，因为那种防守登峰造极，密不透风。”

麦蒂证实了他的先见之明，凯特尔人自1986年来，首次赢得了冠军头衔。而火箭队在季后赛中止步于第一轮，败于犹他。但现在阵中有健康的姚明和防守骁将阿泰斯特，火箭队在2008-2009赛季旗开得胜，教头阿帅统领的队伍在本季赛胸怀大志，力图致远。

开赛来，火箭使用波士顿似的防守利器，在两场比赛中，强压对手，使其得分不足80。在上周六胜奥克拉荷马队89-77的比赛中，火箭队虽集体哑火，场命中率仅达36%，但罚球精准27/31，防守坚固，胜非偶然。

尽管球队三连胜，且有每场有两位数字的胜差，但阿帅对周六的进攻很不满意，三巨头命中率惨不忍睹，阿泰12次出手仅命中三球，而姚明和麦蒂也好不到那去，仅15投六中。

阿帅甚恼，“大家都站桩不动怎么能行，我们要打的象支球队配合得体才行。今晚每次进攻都是在运球不传，一人带球时，没人做拆挡。我不知道这是懒惰呢还是什么，打球就不能这个样！”

 波士顿周六晚也甚为不济，命中率为可怜的35%，以95-79败走印第安城。凯特尔人队在上赛季中，败北上十分仅有三阵，那时气势如虹，开门红，八连胜。但在本赛季始，便于印第安城兵败旗倒。

上赛季，凯特尔人队胜火箭队完成客场八连胜，横扫德克萨斯三雄。但他们在季后赛中，有客场六连败的惨迹，尽管是客场熊，九场仅胜三，但主场牛，仍能称王加冕。

客场之路依旧艰险，波士顿周六的发挥没有起色，保罗-皮尔斯失去准星，命中率不及格，仅15投三中，全队失误高达24次。

前锋凯文-内加特说：“我认为我们是联盟中最好的防守球队，今晚我们要面临全面的挑战。”

火箭队也希望能攻善守，打出10多年来最好的开局。上季赛中，火箭队亦开门三连胜，但其后连败四场，自1996-97赛季以来，尚未尝过开门四连胜果。昔日，火箭开门六连胜，取57胜季赛佳绩。

除上赛季主场败于凯特尔人队之手外，一月二日火箭也以97-93接近比分败北，但那时，麦蒂因伤不在阵中。内加特在上赛季横扫中，横刀立马，均场24分，10个篮板，两场共有5个盖帽，命中率高达56%，居功至伟。

The last time the Boston Celtics visited Houston, they ended the Rockets’ franchise-record winning streak in March with a dominating defensive performance.

The Rockets, who’ve used a similar effort during a successful start to this season, won’t have to wait long for a chance to prove to the NBA champions that they’re an improved club.

Houston will look to move to 4-0 for the first time in 12 years on Tuesday when it hosts the Celtics, who are coming off a rare lopsided loss in their road opener.

Even though the Rockets had won 22 straight games—the second-longest run in NBA history—entering their meeting with the Celtics on March 18, they were without injured center Yao Ming for the 94-74 loss, one of Boston’s 66 victories last season.

“It’s not disappointing,” Houston guard Tracy McGrady said that night. “It’s a hell of a team over there. They outplayed us. I’ve never seen a defense like that. I mean, if they play defense like that, night in and night out, the NBA is in trouble because that was defense at its finest.”

McGrady proved prescient as the Celtics captured their first title since 1986, while the Rockets were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by Utah. But with Yao healthy, defensive standout Ron Artest in Houston and the Rockets (3-0) cruising to start 2008-09, coach Rick Adelman’s team has bigger plans this season.

They’ve used Boston’s formula during the early going, holding a pair of visiting opponents under 80 points. In Saturday’s 89-77 win over Oklahoma City, the Rockets shot just 36 percent from the field but made up for it with a 27-of-31 performance at the line and a strong defensive effort.

Despite his team opening the season with three straight double-digit victories, Adelman wasn’t pleased with the offense on Saturday, when Artest was just 3-of-12 from the floor and Yao and McGrady were each 6-of-15.

“There was no activity and you have to play together as a team,” Adelman said. “We seemed to want to do everything off the dribble, with one guy dribbling and we weren’t setting picks. I don’t know if we were being lazy or what, but we just can’t play that way.”

Boston (2-1) also wasn’t at its best Saturday night, shooting 35 percent in a 95-79 loss at Indiana. The Celtics only lost three games by 10 points or more during the 2007-08 regular season, which began with eight straight victories, but their road woes continued in Indianapolis.

Their win over Houston last season was part of an eight-game road winning streak and a three-game road sweep of the Texas teams, but the Celtics began the postseason with six straight road losses and won the championship despite going 3-9 on the road.

Saturday’s performance didn’t look any better, as Paul Pierce shot 3-of-15 from the floor and Boston turned the ball over 24 times.

“I consider us to be one of the best defensive teams in the league, and tonight, we were challenged, fully,” forward Kevin Garnett said.

The Rockets hope to do the same while jumping out to their best start in more than a decade. Houston also won its first three last season, but lost the fourth game, and hasn’t been 4-0 since 1996-97, when it won six straight to start a 57-win season.

In addition to their home loss to the Celtics last season, the Rockets also lost 97-93 in Boston on Jan. 2 while McGrady was out with an injury. Garnett averaged 24 points and 10 rebounds in the season sweep, totaling five blocked shots and shooting 56 percent in those games.