1978–79 Houston Rockets season

1978–79 Houston Rockets season
1978–79 Houston Rockets season
Head coach	Tom Nissalke
Arena	The Summit
Results
Record	47–35 (.573)
Place	Division: 2nd (Central); Conference: 4th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	East First Round; (lost to Hawks 0–2)
	Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television	KHTV
Radio	KTRH
< 1977–78	1979–80 >

The 1978–79 Houston Rockets season was the Rockets' 12th season in the NBA and 8th season in the city of Houston.^[1]

In the playoffs, the Rockets were swept by the Atlanta Hawks in two games in the First Round.

On the radio, Rockets games began to be broadcast on KTRH after two seasons on KXYZ.^[2]^[3]

Roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	No.	Player	Height	Weight	From
F	4	Rick Barry	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Miami (FL)
F	22	Alonzo Bradley	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Texas Southern
G	10	Mike Dunleavy	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	South Carolina
C	24	Moses Malone	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Petersburg High School
G	23	Calvin Murphy	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Niagara
G	14	Mike Newlin	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Utah
F	50	Robert Reid	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Saint Mary's
F	45	Rudy Tomjanovich	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	218 lb (99 kg)	Michigan

Head coach

Legend

Central Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-San Antonio Spurs	48	34	.585	–	29–12	19–22	11–9
x-Houston Rockets	47	35	.573	1	30–11	17–24	12–8
x-Atlanta Hawks	46	36	.561	2	34–7	12–29	14–6
Cleveland Cavaliers	30	52	.366	18	20–21	10–31	6–14
Detroit Pistons	30	52	.366	18	22–19	8–33	9–11
New Orleans Jazz	26	56	.317	22	21–20	8–33	9–15

z – clinched division title

y – clinched division title

x – clinched playoff spot

1979 playoff game log

First Round: 0–2 (home: 0–1; road: 0–1)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Series
1	April 11	Atlanta	L 106–109	Moses Malone (28)	Moses Malone (17)	Slick Watts (7)	The Summit 14,405	0–1
2	April 13	@ Atlanta	L 91–100	Moses Malone (21)	Moses Malone (24)	Calvin Murphy (4)	Omni Coliseum 15,798	0–2

↑ 1978-79 Houston Rockets
↑ Hodges, Ann (October 6, 1976). "Frank blasts debate organizers". Houston Chronicle. p. 4, Section 7. Retrieved July 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ Hodges, Ann (September 22, 1978). "ABC's 'Apple Pie' sure to be an early loser". Houston Chronicle. p. 7, Section 6. Retrieved July 5, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.