Rockets 104, Jazz 93
Dwight Howard collected 22 points and 10 rebounds and Trevor Ariza chipped in 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting as visiting Houston spoiled Utah's season opener.
James Harden scored 18 points and dished out 10 assists for the Rockets, who swept a back-to-back on the road to start the season for the first time since 1978. Kostas Papanikolaou added 12 points off the bench, hitting four of Houston's 14 3-pointers.
Alec Burks paced Utah with 18 points, while Derrick Favors added 16 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. Trey Burke contributed 15 points and Trevor Booker added 14 off the bench for the Jazz, who were 3-of-18 from 3-point range.
The Rockets held Utah scoreless for more than four minutes and without a field goal for nearly 5 1/2 minutes in the fourth quarter to pull away. Harden hit a pair of free throws and Terrence Jones scored five straight points to set off a decisive 14-1 run.
Ariza scored five straight points to stretch Houston's lead to 75-62 with 3:12 left in the third quarter, but the Jazz rattled off 10 straight points to end the period and pull within three. Utah hit two of its first four shots in the final stanza to stay within three before missing 11 straight shots and committing two turnovers during the drought.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Jazz shot 60 percent in the first half but only 36.9 percent after the break. … Jones, who posted 16 points and 13 rebounds on Wednesday, scored seven of his nine points in the fourth quarter. … Jazz SG Gordon Heyward had eight rebounds and seven assists but was limited to eight points on 3-of-11 shooting.