ROOKIE Aaron Brooks came off the bench to score 18 points, five teammates reached double figures, as the Houston Rockets beat the short-handed Clippers 105-79 in Los Angeles on Sunday night to clinch a playoff berth.

The victory was the third straight for the Rockets (52-25), who rank fifth in the rugged Western Conference but trail the first-place New Orleans Hornets by only 2 1/2 games.

Rookie Luis Scola scored 16 points, Luther Head added 15, Tracy McGrady had 13 points, eight rebounds and nine assists, Bobby Jackson had 12 points, five rebounds and four assists, and Shane Battier scored 11 for the Rockets, who shot 48.1 percent and outrebounded the Clippers 51-33.

Josh Powell had a career-high 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers (23-54), who have lost 21 of their last 25 games. Elton Brand, playing just his third game of the season, had 19 points and eight rebounds and Cuttino Mobley added 11 points for the losers.

Houston’s Rafer Alston, averaging 13.2 points and 5.4 assists, missed his third game due to a sore left hamstring. But the Rockets got exceptional play from Jackson and Brooks, his replacements at point guard.

With McGrady on the bench, Shane Battier and Brooks scored seven points each during a 19-4 run that gave Houston 56-36 lead. The Rockets led 62-42 at halftime thanks to a 53.8 percent shooting performance and a 26-15 rebounding advantage.

(SD-Agencies)