HOUSTON -- James Harden was out with a thumb injury, and then Dwight Howard got off to a slow start. Jordan Poyer Jersey . It sure looked as if it was going to be a long night for the Houston Rockets. Then everything changed in the third quarter. Howard got back on track and a pair of role players stepped up to help Houston rally for a 97-90 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday. The Rockets trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half before scoring 33 in the third to go on top. San Antonio used an 11-3 spurt to pull within two in the final minutes, but Howard and Jeremy Lin helped Houston hold on for the win. "We just kept grinding it out," Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. "We changed a couple of things defensively and the guys kind of dug in and got stops." Howard had 23 points and 16 rebounds for Houston, which enjoyed a 55-39 advantage on the glass. Terrence Jones scored 21 points and Lin added 18 points and eight assists while starting in Hardens spot. Harden, who leads the team with 23.7 points a game, was out with a bruised left thumb. "I know I missed a lot of shots early," Howard said. "I didnt lose focus. I got a little frustrated because I wanted to make those shots, especially against Tim (Duncan). But I just tried to stick with it and show the team that no matter what Im going to battle." Boris Diaw scored a season-high 22 points for the Spurs, and he also had 11 rebounds. Tony Parker added 17 points and Duncan had 12 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks. Houston was clinging to a 90-88 lead with less than two minutes left when Howard had a dunk and Lin made a jumper. Duncan had a layup on the other end, but Lin sunk a pair of free throws to secure the victory. Houston has won all three meetings with the Southwest Division-leading Spurs to secure the season series for the first time since 1996-97. They have one scheduled game left on April 14 in Houston. San Antonios 90-point performance ended a streak of 15 straight games with at least 100 points and sent the Spurs to consecutive losses for the first time this season. The last time they were held below 100 was a 111-98 loss to Houston on Christmas Day. The Spurs got within six on a hook shot by Diaw early in the fourth quarter. Lin then scored five quick points to extend Houstons lead to 81-70. Houston was up by four points with four minutes left in the third quarter when San Antonio resorted to the "Hack-a-Howard" defence, fouling the centre every time the Rockets got the ball. Howard made 13 of 25 foul shots on the night, leaving him at 52.2 per cent from the line for the season. "I figured they were going to do it," he said. "Im just glad I made most of them." Duncan lamented that the tactic backfired for the Spurs. "Thats what he had to do to get us out of it," Duncan said. "He made free throws and he hurt us with them." The Spurs employed the strategy on eight straight possessions, with Howard making 10 foul shots while they had six points as Houston extended its lead to 70-62. Diaw made a jump shot at the end of the third quarter to cut Houstons lead to 72-64 entering the fourth. The Rockets opened the second half with an 11-2 run, capped by a two-handed dunk by Howard, to take their first lead of the game at 50-48. Lin started the run with a 3-pointer and also had two free throws in the surge. Manu Ginobili made four free throws for San Antonio before Houston scored six straight points to take a 56-52 lead. Ginobili and Chandler Parsons then exchanged rim-rattling dunks in rapid succession. The 36-year-old Ginobili injured himself on his jam and was soon limping and holding his upper left leg. He remained in the game for a bit before walking off the court and into the locker room at the next timeout. The team said he had tightness in his left hamstring. He missed time earlier this month with the same problem. San Antonio led by 10 points in the second quarter before Howard made his first basket of the night after starting the game 0 for 8. The bucket was the first of five straight points for Howard with San Antonios only points in that stretch coming on a layup by Marco Belinelli, helping Houston close to 46-39 at halftime. Houston struggled early without Harden and San Antonio jumped to a 9-0 lead thanks to five points from Diaw. The Spurs pushed the lead to 21-6 with about five minutes left in the first. NOTES: Harden injured his thumb in Houstons last game at Memphis on Saturday. ... Diaw has scored at least 10 points 20 times this season. Zay Jones Womens Jersey . "I could have been equipment manager but nooooo" from Lisa on Ice. Season 6, Episode 8. Ed Oliver Bills Jersey .com) - Roosevelt Jones had 19 points, seven rebounds and seven assists to lead No. http://www.shoptheofficialbills.com/Elite-Devin-Singletary-Bills-Jersey/ .C. -- Panthers offensive tackle Jordan Gross is saying goodbye to the NFL after 11 seasons.Got a question on rule clarification, comments on rule enforcements or some memorable NHL stories? Kerry wants to answer your emails at cmonref@tsn.ca. Kerry, I hope you address Ron MacLeans comment during the second intermission of Game 4 in Montreal-Tampa series. Basically, he suggested that the NHL should not have used a referee from Quebec, following the Game 3 disputed non-goal, because the referee could be biased towards Montreal. Thank you,Bobby Dodd ---- Hi Kerry, On Tuesday, the host of the other playoff broadcaster said that a referee from the area should not have been assigned Game 4 of the Tampa-Montreal series after a controversial call Sunday involving another francophone Quebec referee. Do you agree with that sentiment? Coming off a game like Sundays, should that have been done if it was an official from Ontario for a Leafs game? Or a referee from B.C. for a Canucks game? Jamie Walker Bobby, Jamie and to all Canadians: Ron MacLean offered a very contrite apology for his initial inappropriate comments during a follow-up segment in the Hockey Night In Canada broadcast when he said, "First of all, I want to say Im sorry. Its divisive any time you become about French and English in our country. But I didnt intend to go down that path." We all need to accept Ron MacLeans apology. I have always had the utmost respect for Ron and his sincere apology speaks to the quality of the man more than the personality you see on camera. I know what Ron intended, even though it came out all wrong. There have been many times when the NHL felt the need to alter an officials assignment in an effort to manage a regular season or playoff series based on an incident that took place in a previous game. I called Director of Officiating Bryan Lewis one time when there was a overlap in the assignment process that would have resulted in me working six of seven road games for the Montreal Canadiens. It was just an assignment glitch that was quickly adjusted to avoid overexposure of a referee to one team. Another time, VP of Hockey Ops Brian Burke assigned me as a last-minute addition in a Habs-Flyers game after Lyle Odelein threatened to get Eric Lindros following a fight between the two players in the first game of a home and home series. I was also reassigned to work a return grudge match between Ottawa and the Leafs following a major battle they had a couple of nights earlier in Toronto. In the 2004 Stanley Cup Final between Calgary and Tampa, an initial assignment schedule for the refs waas doomed to fail from the very beginning. TreDavious White Youth Jersey. The referee pairings of Bill McCreary/Stephen Walkom and Brad Watson and I were assigned to work all of our games in the same venue. (Watson and I were assigned to Games 3, 4 and 6 in Calgary while the other crew was in Tampa for 1, 2 and 5). Series traditionally heat up as they progress and it was a suicide mission to have the same refs work in the same venue. Following Game 5 in Tampa a meeting was held in the officials room and I was informed by Colin Campbell and then Director of Officiating Andy Van Hellemond that Brad Watson and I were off Game 6 in Calgary. Nobody informed Brad Watson and he learned of the change the next day at the Denver Airport when Wats overhead members of the media talking about the assignment change as they were connecting onto his flight to Calgary! I returned to work Game 7 in Tampa with Bill McCreary. These kinds of adjustments in the assignment process are reasonable and necessary at times. Ron MacLean, as a referee himself, would certainly understand this type of logic. What Ron should have thought of before he embarked down a self-admitted "divisive" path is that whenever he pulls on his striped jersey, hes no longer from his hometown or even a star television host. In that moment, and in the performance of his duties, Ron is an impartial, unbiased referee that is empowered to place his integrity and that of the game on the line. He cares not what teams are playing or if they are from the town that he lives in. It matters not to Ron what colour their team jerseys are or the crest on the front. It is his duty as a "referee" to perform to the very best of his ability without prejudice or bias. I know that Ron MacLean performs those duties without question every time he pulls on that striped jersey. NHL officials are no different in this regard. When they pull on stripes they are professional people with strong character and integrity. They too perform their duties to the best of their ability and are paid to be impartial. We can criticize an official for a poor call or even our perception of their level of competency. What should never be brought into question is any perceived bias based on where an official might make his home or his family heritage. The referee in Ron MacLean understands these facts as well as I do. Ron - a consummate professional and a man of character and integrity - sincerely apologized for his slip up and brief act of misconduct. As such Ron needs to be forgiven. Time to move forward. ' ' '