Harden leads Rockets over Mavs 109-87 for 6th straight win
HOUSTON (AP) James Harden had 18 points, 16 assists and nine rebounds and the Houston Rockets beat the Dallas Mavericks 109-87 on Saturday night for their sixth straight win.
Eric Gordon added 18 points and Trevor Ariza had 17 to give Houston its first six-game winning streak since Oct. 28-Nov. 6, 2014.
Gordon's 3-pointer extended Houston's lead to 16 in the fourth quarter before Harrison Barnes hit a basket on the other end. Montrezl Harrell then made an off-balance layup as he was fouled and crashed to the court. He made the free throw to leave Houston up 92-75.
Wesley Matthews made a 3 with about six minutes left to get the Mavericks within 12. But Patrick Beverley, who scored all of his 15 points in the fourth quarter, hit 3s on the next two possessions to push Houston's lead to 100-82.