The first-half offensive display by the Houston Rockets against the New York Knicks on Monday may not have been aesthetically pleasing, but it was sufficient to establish a comfortable 16-point lead.

However, when the Knicks asserted their dominance in the third quarter with their defensive prowess and work on the offensive boards, the Rockets were posed with a test of their collective resilience, a challenge they had to respond to given their four-game losing streak leading up to the game.

Houston managed to withstand two double-digit comebacks from the Knicks and secured a 105-103 win, setting the stage to garner some momentum heading into the All-Star break. The Rockets will be paying a visit to the injury-plagued Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday to conclude the unofficial first half of the season.

“We needed it a lot,” said Rockets forward Dillon Brooks, who scored a team-high 23 points. “We told each other that we’ve got to play free, play together, play a little desperate, and play for each other, and I feel like we did that. These wins after long road losing streaks are good for us.”

Despite the controversy surrounding the validity of the last-second foul call that led to Aaron Holiday going to the line to secure the win, the Rockets will strive to capitalize on the momentum from the victory.

On Tuesday, reports emerged that the Knicks had filed a protest with the league following the game, after crew chief Ed Malloy admitted that the foul on the Knicks’ Jalen Brunson “should not have been called.”

The Rockets were four games above .500 after defeating Memphis 103-96 on Dec. 15. However, they have been hindered by defensive deterioration and injuries since then, and a victory on Wednesday would be crucial for them to narrow the gap to four games below .500.

Houston has been missing reserve forward Tari Eason (leg) for an extended period and recently suffered the losses of veteran guard Fred VanVleet (adductor) and standout rookie Cam Whitmore (ankle). Their recent performances have been arduous.

“It would put us in a good position in the standings,” Brooks said of the potential to end a five-game road skid. “I know we fell down a little bit, but if we get these two wins and go into the break confident, (it would provide) something to look forward to when we come back because we’ve got two good games (against the New Orleans Pelicans and Phoenix Suns) coming back.”

Already lacking a quartet of primary ball handlers — Ja Morant (shoulder), Desmond Bane (ankle), Marcus Smart (finger), and Derrick Rose (ankle) — the Grizzlies also saw Scotty Pippen Jr. sidelined due to back soreness during their 96-87 loss to the Pelicans on Monday, marking their ninth consecutive defeat.

Injuries have become synonymous with this season for Memphis, but the multitude of absences in one position is proving to be debilitating.

Pippen’s exit after contributing six points and six assists in 25 minutes left the already undermanned Grizzlies in a situation where they had to rely on unconventional options to orchestrate their offense.

This incident only added to the ongoing challenges for a team that appears to be overwhelmed by them.

“It’s kind of by committee and we’ve had to utilize that obviously throughout the season,” remarked Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins.

“Overall, I was just proud of the guys with how they responded. Different guys stepping up in different moments. Whether we had a point guard or not, I thought we played a pretty good game together. We just couldn’t get the ball to go in the net, and obviously, the (17) turnovers hurt us for 48 minutes.”