Belt game 2,568 · February 23, 1976
Houston Rockets take the belt
Houston Rockets beat Cleveland Cavaliers 117–114 at home to start reign 1,131 of the NBA belt, the 13th for the franchise.
Cleveland Cavaliers had held it since February 13, 1976, with 4 defenses over 10 days.
Houston Rockets held it for 2 days and 0 defenses, then lost it to Boston Celtics on February 25, 1976.
1,131Reign number
13Team's reign
0Defenses
2Days held
Box score
Houston Rockets
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Newlin | 35 | 25 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 9-17 | — | 7-9 |
| Ed Ratleff | 40 | 22 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 11-21 | — | 0-0 |
| Calvin Murphy | 36 | 16 | 2 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 7-12 | — | 2-2 |
| John Johnson | 25 | 14 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 4-12 | — | 6-6 |
| Kevin Kunnert | 28 | 13 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6-10 | — | 1-2 |
| Joe Meriweather | 25 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 6-10 | — | 0-0 |
| Rudy Tomjanovich | 29 | 12 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6-11 | — | 0-0 |
| Ron Riley | 22 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1-3 | — | 1-2 |
Cleveland Cavaliers
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dick Snyder | 36 | 25 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 12-20 | — | 1-1 |
| Jim Cleamons | 40 | 23 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 10-18 | — | 3-4 |
| Bingo Smith | 31 | 19 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8-16 | — | 3-4 |
| Jim Brewer | 36 | 16 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7-13 | — | 2-2 |
| Jim Chones | 32 | 11 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 5-9 | — | 1-1 |
| Campy Russell | 24 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5-11 | — | 0-0 |
| Austin Carr | 12 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2-6 | — | 2-2 |
| Foots Walker | 8 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0-4 | — | 2-3 |
| John Lambert | 9 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1-1 | — | 0-1 |
| Nate Thurmond | 12 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0-2 | — | 0-0 |
Player box scores: Historical NBA Data and Player Box Scores by Eoin Moore (CC0).