Udoka criticizes ‘lenient’ refereeing in Rockets defeat against Bulls
Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka stated that his team arrived late to Monday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls, during which Houston fell behind by 20 points after the opening quarter.
Udoka was ejected early, receiving two technical fouls with 9.1 seconds left in a 132-124 defeat to the Bulls.
The loss caused the Rockets to drop from fourth to sixth place in the Western Conference, trailing the Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves by half a game.
Following the game, Udoka expressed his dissatisfaction with several referee decisions, including his two technical fouls and a flagrant foul called against Rockets guard Amen Thompson, labeling them as “soft.”
“The flagrant’s soft as hell, it’s nothing. And the techs were soft too,” Udoka remarked during his postgame press conference.
He added that he did not wish to “complain about a soft crew, so it is what it is.”
Udoka’s first technical foul was issued when he contested the flagrant foul against Thompson, which was assessed after the officiating crew reviewed a collision during the first quarter. The second technical was given in the closing moments of the fourth quarter when Udoka disputed an offensive foul called on Kevin Durant, who was penalized while attempting to set a screen.
Chicago converted all four free throws following the infractions.
Udoka’s frustration also stemmed from his team’s performance, which allowed 41 points in the first quarter against the NBA’s 25th-ranked offense. “We didn’t respect the game or the opponent, and the only way they score 41 is if we’re playing the way we did on both sides,” Udoka stated.
Thanks to 40 points on 15-for-23 shooting from Durant and 33 points on 16-for-19 shooting from Alperen Sengun, the Rockets managed to take the lead midway through the fourth quarter. However, Bulls starters Josh Giddey, Matas Buzelis, and Jalen Smith each hit 3-pointers in the final 90 seconds to secure the win for Chicago.
Houston’s defeat marked its 12th loss to a team with a sub-.500 record this season, which is tied for the highest number by any team with a winning record, according to ESPN Research.
“It’s the NBA, and if you come out like that, you’re going to be inconsistent, you’re going to have bad losses,” Udoka said. “And this is another one of them.”
