Rockets' McHale on hobbled Howard: 'He played his ass off'

Dwight Howard's effort wasn't enough to lift the Houston Rockets to a Game 2 victory at Oracle Arena on Thursday, but it's fair to say his teammates and coaches appreciated it.

"He played his ass off," coach Kevin McHale said of Howard, whose status had been in question due to a sprained knee sustained in Game 1. "There's just nothing else you can say. The guy played really, really well."

Howard finished with 19 points, 17 rebounds, two steals, an assist and a block on 8-of-11 shooting, logging 40 admirable minutes while noticeably hobbled.

"I just tried to play as hard as I could. I didn't think about it at all," Howard said afterwards, as reported by ESPN's Calvin Watkins. "We'll see how it feels tomorrow. I just went out there and gave my teammates all that I could give them despite what happened with my knee."

What happened was a knee-on-knee collision with teammate Josh Smith during the first quarter of Game 1.

The Rockets will have to hope Howard can give them the same kind of effort in Saturday's Game 3, when they look to avoid an insurmountable 3-0 deficit as the series shifts to Houston.

Howard, who missed half the regular season with lingering issues in his right knee, has been a key component of the Rockets' run to the Western Conference Finals, averaging more than 16 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks on 59 percent shooting during the playoffs.

The Rockets have performed eight points per 100 possessions better with Howard on the court as opposed to the bench, and while their offense has stagnated somewhat with D-12 manning the middle, the Rockets' defense has improved dramatically.