The Houston Rockets have been one of the most pleasant surprises in the NBA to start the 2024-25 season, but their winning ways came to an end on Tuesday night against a struggling Sacramento Kings team. Rockets head coach Ime Udoka was ejected along with star center Alperen Sengun late in the fourth quarter, and it led to one of the best rants of the year.
Ime Udoka’s anti-ref rant after ejection, Rockets loss is NBA’s best this season
The Rockets coach got his money’s worth on this ejection.
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
Frustration from a physical game spilled over late, and led to Udoka getting a tossed for a double-technical foul with under two minutes left. Udoka barked at the refs as he left the court, but he really got his money’s worth in the post-game pressure conference.
What did Udoka tell the refs on his way out? “Get some f****** glasses, and open your eyes.”
Udoka thought Sengun got fouled on the previous play, but the refs didn’t call it. While the Rockets actually shot one more free throw than the Kings on the night, Houston believed it was getting beaten up inside all night without the refs blowing their whistle.
Here’s a look at Udoka’s ejection late in the game.
The Rockets had won 10 of their last 12 games. Even with the loss, Houston is advancing to the quarterfinals of the NBA Cup, where they will host the Golden State Warriors for a trip to Las Vegas for the semifinals.
It felt like a playoff atmosphere for Rockets-Kings in early Dec. You have to respect the Cup.
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