On Form, Houston Rockets thrash Atlanta Hawks for third straight win

Rockets combo guard James Harden supplied 31 points and 10 assists and Clint Capela added 26 points and 11 rebounds as the Houston Rockets won their third straight game with a 121-105 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night.

View image on Twitter

Harden’s haul made him the first player in NBA history to score 30+ points against all 29 opponents in the same season.

Capela was 11-for-13 from the floor and continued his hot play since returning from a thumb injury that caused him to miss 15 games. The Rockets are 14-3 this season in games where Capela has scored 20-plus points.

Harden added 31 points, sinking 11-of-12 from the line, and had 10 assists and eight rebounds. Danuel House Jr came off the bench to score 19, including six three-pointers. Chris Paul scored 13 and had 11 assists.

Atlanta got 20 points and 10 rebounds from John Collins, who posted his 30th double-double, and 21 points and 12 assists from Trae Young, the rookie’s 24th double-double. Taurean Prince added 16 points, and Vince Carter hit five three-pointers and scored 15.

Atlanta briefly took a 61-59 edge on a three-pointer by Dewayne Dedmon. But the Rockets answered with consecutive treys from PJ Tucker, Paul and Harden to regain a seven-point advantage at 6:15 in the third quarter.

Houston extended the lead to 11 on back-to-back baskets by Harden and Capela that made it 78-67 and entered the final quarter leading 84-72 and rolled to victory.

The Rockets have won 12 of their last 13 games overall and 10 of their last 13 road games. They swept the two-game season series with the Hawks for the second straight campaign.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *