Pacers 114, Rockets 81
Paul George led the way with 24 points and nine rebounds as Indiana recovered from its first set of back-to-back losses by crushing visiting Houston.
Lance Stephenson added 16 points, six rebounds and six assists while David West and George Hill scored 12 points apiece for the Pacers. Danny Granger (calf) made his season debut and struggled to five points on 1-of-7 shooting in 22 minutes off the bench.
Dwight Howard recorded 19 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks as the Rockets shot 38.1 percent in putting up their lowest point total of the season. James Harden scored 12 points on 3-of-14 shooting while Chandler Parsons scored 14.
Houston was within 41-39 just past the midway point of the second quarter when Indiana began to take control. Hill hit a pair of 3-pointers during a 13-2 run to make it a double-digit gap and the Pacers took a 56-45 lead into the break.
Back-to-back 3-pointers from George and Stephenson early in the third pushed it to 70-51, and five straight points from George later in the period spread the lead to 26 points. Granger’s field goal was a 3-pointer with 9:48 left in the game that made it 92-67 and Indiana coasted to the finish.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Rockets’ previous season low was 88 points. … Houston PG Jeremy Lin (back) missed his third straight game. … Indiana went 12-for-26 from 3-point range while the Rockets hit just 4-of-22 attempts from beyond the arc.