Schedule and 2012-13 Results
Regular Season Records: Oklahoma City 60-22, Houston 45-37
Game 1 on Sunday, 21 April: Houston loses at Oklahoma City, 120-pts-91
Game 2 on Wednesday, 24 April: Houston loses at Oklahoma City, 105-pts-102
Game 3 on Saturday, 27 April: Oklahoma City wins at Houston, 104-pts-101
Game 4 on Monday, 29 April: Oklahoma City loses at Houston, 105-pts-103
Game 5 on Wednesday, 01 May: Houston wins at Oklahoma City, 107-pts-100
Game 6 on Friday, 03 May: Oklahoma City wins at Houston, 103-pts-94

SERIES NOTES:

After Game 6: The Oklahoma City Thunder visited and defeated the Houston Rockets 103-pts-94, for a 4-games-2 win of MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1207. With the series 1207 win, the Oklahoma City Thunder improve their best-of-7 NBA playoff series record to 6-3 overall and 3-1 in the Preliminary round. With the series 1207 loss, the Houston Rockets see their best-of-7 NBA playoff series record fall to 13-15 overall and 1-5 in the Preliminary round. The win order for the victorious Oklahoma City Thunder in series 1207 was WWWLLW: Series 1207 thus becomes the second NBA Preliminary round series, the ninth NBA series (all rounds), and the 21st MLB/NBA/NHL series (all rounds) to follow such a win order to completion.

After Game 5: The Oklahoma City Thunder hosted and lost to the Houston Rockets 107-pts-100, thus seeing their MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1207 lead fall to 3-games-2. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 3-games-2, the Oklahoma City Thunder have a 2-0 series record and a 1-1 Game 6 record. When trailing a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 3-games-2, the Houston Rockets have a 2-9 series record (with an active four-series losing streak) and a 5-6 Game 6 record. Prior to 2013, the last time that an NBA team once trailing a best-of-7 playoff series three-games-nil won Game 5 on the road was in series 1013, in which the Chicago Bulls defeated the Pistons in Detroit in their 2007 NBA Quarterfinals series (Chicago lost Game 6 at home). The last time that an NBA team once trailing a best-of-7 playoff series three-games-nil won Game 5 on the road and then won Game 6 at home was in series 894, in which the Portland Trailblazers did so against the Dallas Mavericks in their 2003 Preliminary-round series (Portland lost Game 7 in Dallas).

After Game 4: The Oklahoma City Thunder visited and lost to the Houston Rockets 105-pts-103, thus seeing their MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1207 lead fall to 3-games-1. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 3-games-1, the Oklahoma City Thunder have a 2-0 series record and a 2-0 Game 5 record. When trailing a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 3-games-1, the Houston Rockets have a 1-6 series record and a 5-2 Game 5 record. Series 1207 becomes the 17th best-of-7 NBA playoff series in which Games 2-4 were decided by a total of eight points or less, but the first such series in which one team led 3-games-nil after the first three games.

After Game 3: The Oklahoma City Thunder visited and defeated the Houston Rockets 104-pts-101 to take a 3-games-nil lead in MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1207. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 3-games-nil, the Oklahoma City Thunder have a 2-0 series record and a 1-1 Game 4 record. When trailing a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 3-games-nil, the Houston Rockets have a 0-2 series record and a 0-2 Game 4 record. The Houston Rockets thus become the 312th team in an MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series to fall behind 3-games-nil, and will attempt to become the fifth team to surmount that deficit for a 4-games-3 series victory. Having yet to hold an end-quarter lead in series 1207, Houston is on its way to suffering a WhoWins™ best-of-7 NBA “Annihilation.”

After Game 2: The Oklahoma City Thunder hosted and defeated the Houston Rockets 105-pts-102 to take a 2-games-nil lead in MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1207. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 2-games-nil, the Oklahoma City Thunder have a 3-0 series record and a 2-1 Game 3 record. When trailing a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 2-games-nil, the Houston Rockets have a 2-10 series record (with an active four-series losing streak) and a 10-2 Game 3 record (with an active three-Game 3 winning streak). Series 1207 is closely tracking series 1181, in which the Thunder in Oklahoma City also won Game 1 by 29 points and squeaked out a two-point Game 2 win over the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2012 NBA Quarterfinals; Oklahoma City won series 1181 in five games. The 10-2 Game 3 record of the Houston Rockets when down 2-games-nil in a best-of-7 NBA playoff series is the best such record among NBA teams with at least one Game 3 loss in that situation (the Charlotte/New Orleans Hornets are a combined 6-0 in Game 3 in that situation); worst in that situation are the Memphis Grizzlies at 0-3 in Game 3.

After Game 1: The Oklahoma City Thunder hosted and defeated the Houston Rockets 120-pts-91 to take a 1-game-nil lead in MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1207. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 1-game-nil, the Oklahoma City Thunder have a 3-1 series record and a 3-1 Game 2 record. When trailing a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 1-game-nil, the Houston Rockets have a 4-11 series record (with an active four-series losing streak) and a 3-12 Game 2 record (with an active nine-Game 2 losing streak). In the history of best-of-7 NBA playoff series from 1947 through 2012, inclusive, teams which win Game 1 by 29 points (such as Oklahoma City in series 1207 Game 1) have a 2-0 series record (last achieved by in series 1181 in the 2012 NBA Quarterfinals . . . by the Oklahoma City Thunder).

Pre-series assessment: In the 2012-13 NBA regular season, Oklahoma City finished 15 games ahead of Houston. From 1947 through the 2012 NBA Finals round, inclusive, when NBA teams led their best-of-7 playoff series opponents by 15 regular-season games, they have posted a 6-3 (.667) best-of-7 series record in those series against those opponents. MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1207 is the 28th best-of-7 NBA playoff series for Houston, and the ninth for Oklahoma City. In best-of-7 NBA playoff series, Houston has a 13-14 series record, a 1-4 Preliminary-round series record, and a 12-15 Game 1 record, while Oklahoma City has a 5-3 series record, a 2-1 Preliminary-round record, and a 4-4 Game 1 record. Series 1207 is the first best-of-7 NBA playoff series meeting between Houston and Oklahoma City.