The Houston Rockets won their fourth game in a row on Monday night, getting 27 big points from Amen Thompson to lead the way at the Toyota Center. Thompson also had 5 rebounds, 4 assists, a steal and a block,
while shooting 11-for-18 from the field and 1-for-3 from deep. The block was a huge one down the stretch on a three-point attempt by Mavs rookie Cooper Flagg that helped to seal the game.
Alperen Sengun also had a big night, going for 26 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists, while shooting 10-for-20 from the floor. He hit a spinning shot with 90 seconds left that helped the Rockets close out Dallas.
Kevin Durant addded 21 points, but he shot just 6-for-18 from the floor and 2-for-8 from three, but the Thompson-Durant-Sengun trio still combined for 74 total points for the Rockets.
Jabari Smith Jr. sat this one out with an ankle injury, and Tari Eason scored 15 points while getting the nod as a starter, while Steven Adams and Clint Capela combined for 17 rebounds and 4 blocked shots off of the bench for the Rockets.
The Mavs got 29 points and 12 rebounds from P.J. Washington, 17 from Max Christie, 14 from Daniel Gafford and 12 from Flagg to lead the way. This group started out strong, holding a slim lead over the Rockets in the first, before falling behind in a close game. The Mavs would tie it at 99 with four minutes left before the Rockets stepped on the gas one final time to close the game out.
Houston now moves to 4-2 on the season. It wasn’t the prettiest of games for the Rockets, but they got the job done while missing another starter in Smith and with Durant far from his best. Houston returns to action Wednesday night on the road against the Memphis Grizzlies.
