(SportsNetwork. Alshon Jeffery Jersey .com) - It appears both the Houston Rockets and Chicago Bulls will reach the playoffs, but the two squads are coming off losing efforts. Watch the Rockets vs. Bulls live tonight on TSN2 starting at 7pm et/4pm pt. Something has to give when the Rockets pay a visit to the Bulls Thursday night at the United Center. The Rockets opened a tough three-game road trip with Tuesdays 106-98 loss at Oklahoma City, as James Harden netted 28 points and Chandler Parsons added 19. Dwight Howard was limited to nine points and grabbed 10 rebounds for Houston, which had a five-game winning streak stopped and fell to 18-13 on the road. The Rockets missed several opportunities to keep their winning streak intact. "We missed 15 layups out there," said Houston head coach Kevin McHale. "We went in there soft tonight. We didnt attack the rim." The Rockets are fourth in the Western Conference standings, one game behind the Los Angeles Clippers and four off the top seed. Houston will close the trip Sunday afternoon in Miami. Meanwhile, the Bulls will continue their quest for a playoff spot and a six- game homestand versus the Rockets. Chicago has alternated results in the last six games and dropped to 1-2 on the stay with Tuesdays 104-96 loss to San Antonio. Chicago was down 38-14 after the first quarter and a second-half surge fell short. "Theres nothing to take (from a game) when you get down by 30 and then make a run at the end. Weve got to get it figured out," Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau said. D.J. Augustin and Jimmy Butler scored 24 and 23 points, respectively, while Joakim Noah rounded out the double-digit scorers with 13 points to go along with eight rebounds, seven assists and two blocks. The Bulls shot 42.7 percent and committed 14 turnovers. The Bulls have a 19-12 record as the host and are fourth in the East standings, 1 1/2 games behind the Toronto Raptors. They still have Sacramento and Oklahoma City slated to visit the United Center. Chicago suffered a 109-94 loss at Houston on Dec. 18 and was led by Butlers 20 points. Howard had 23 points in that one and both Harden and Parsons ended with 19 for the Rockets, who have won four in a row in this series. Houston is 7-3 in the last 10 trips to the Windy City. Ron Jaworski Jersey . His team rose to the occasion Sunday with a 3-1 victory over Sweden in the bronze-medal game. "The sting from yesterday is not something we hid from or pretend didnt happen," Dineen said. Derek Barnett Jersey . Playing in his fourth major league game, Polanco broke a tie in the 13th inning with his first homer, helping Pittsburgh to an 8-6 victory over the Miami Marlins after the Pirates had a ninth-inning meltdown. http://www.theeaglesfootballauthentic.com/ . Cleveland released the troubled wide receiver on Wednesday, an expected ending after Bess was arrested in January for assaulting a law enforcement officer at an airport and other bizarre behaviour.CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- When Michael Jordan speaks, people still listen. The Charlotte Bobcats owner praised his team during a pregame locker room speech Friday night, but warned his players its only going to get tougher from here on out. Jordan spoke directly about the Bobcats potentially making the playoffs -- something that seemed inconceivable five months ago for a team that was 7-59 and 21-61 the previous two seasons. "He talked to them about the progress that he had seen and praised them for their attitude and togetherness as a team," coach Steve Clifford said. "And he let them know, which I thought was perfect, the toughest part is ahead. We made our first step and it now gets tougher. It was a great message." A message that apparently inspired the Bobcats, currently seventh in the Eastern Conference. Al Jefferson scored 28 points, Kemba Walker had 20 points and 14 assists, and the Bobcats (29-33) defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 101-92 for their sixth straight win at home, surpassing their win total from the previous two seasons combined. It was an important win for the Bobcats, who improved to 3-0 this season against the Cavaliers and now own the tiebreaker against both Detroit and Cleveland, the ninth- and 10th-place teams in the East. "If that dont motivate you, I dont know what will," Jefferson said of Jordan addressing the team. Clifford said he asked Jordan to speak to the players before the game and he gladly accepted the invitation. He said players were "locked in" to every word Jordan spoke. "Lets face it, if youre coaching anywhere, he would be the first guy that you would say, Would you mind coming to talk to our team?" Clifford said. "Im saying hes our owner and, shoot, you are always looking for a little edge. I thought it was perfect." Said Jefferson: "He told us he was proud of us, but we have a long way to go. We cant be happy with what we have done so far. We have to continue to grow and get better." It was a huge loss for Cleveland. Dion Waiters and Luol Deng each scored 19 points for the Cavaliers, who began the night 3 1/2 games behind Atlanta for the final playoff spot in the East. They now trail Charlotte by 5 1/2 games. "It hurts," Cavaliers coach Mike Brown said. "Especially knowing where were sitting and where theyre sitting right now, its a tough loss. Brent Celek Jersey. quot; Jefferson shot 12 of 18 from the field and reached 20 points for the 22nd time in his last 24 games. Chris Douglas-Roberts added 14 points, including four 3-pointers, and a season-high nine rebounds. Charlottes six-game home winning streak is its longest since a seven-game run in March 2010. "There are 20 games left and its time to start talking about the playoffs -- about not just qualifying but getting our team game-ready for the playoffs and guys getting their individual games ready," Clifford said. The Bobcats defeated the Cavaliers by six points in each of the two previous meetings this season without Jefferson, who sat out both games with a sprained ankle. Jefferson had 38 points against Miami and 34 in a win over Indiana this week, and was a big factor from the outset against the Cavaliers. He used a series of pump fakes and up-and-under moves to fool the Cavaliers, and continued to knock down his mid-range jump shot. The 6-foot-10 centre scored 18 points in the first half on 8-of-10 shooting to help Charlotte build a 55-50 lead at the break despite the Cavaliers shooting 55 per cent from the field. Cleveland took an 81-80 lead on a pair of free throws by Waiters with 7 minutes left in the game. But Walker matched that with two free throws of his own and knocked down a jumper to spark a 15-5 run that put Charlotte safely ahead. The Cavaliers shot just 32 per cent in the second half, and Charlotte held Kyrie Irving to 13 points on 5-of-17 shooting. Irving came in averaging 24.5 points in his previous four games in Charlotte. Waiters said its not too late for the Cavaliers to make a playoff push. But theyll need to play much better than they did Friday night. "We have a chance and a shot, so why not? Why not us?" Waiters said. "Weve got to have a sense of urgency. The clock is ticking. The games are running out. Making the playoffs is right there and weve got a great opportunity." NOTES: Bobcats guard Gerald Henderson missed his third straight game with a right calf strain. ... Anderson Varejao (back) and C.J. Miles (ankle) were back at practice this week but didnt make the trip to Charlotte, which meant Spencer Hawes and Tristan Thompson were left to defend Jefferson. ... 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