Nets at Rockets
Houston looks to maintain a perfect homestand Friday night when it hosts road-weary Brooklyn in what has been a lopsided series of late. The Rockets have won the first three games of a five-game stay at home after a 110-105 triumph over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday, their seventh win in the last eight home games overall. James Harden had 21 points and 10 assists to help offset the absence of point guard Patrick Beverley, who remains day-to-day with an illness.
Harden scored 30 points on 9-of-13 shooting to lead Houston to a 113-99 win at Brooklyn last month as the Rockets improved to 15-1 in the last 16 meetings, which includes seven straight victories over the Nets at home. Brooklyn fell to 2-4 on its eight-game stretch on the road with a 102-96 setback at New Orleans on Wednesday. Joe Johnson led the way with 21 points and 10 rebounds in the loss as the Nets dropped to 9-12 against the West.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, YES (Brooklyn), ROOT Southwest (Houston)
ABOUT THE NETS (23-32): Brooklyn has undergone several changes to its rotation in the wake of the Kevin Garnett trade, with holdover Brook Lopez beginning to seize more of the spotlight. Lopez had 15 points off the bench against the Pelicans and is averaging 16.2 on the road trip, gaining his share of the scoring load at the expense of starting center Mason Plumlee. While Lopez had played at least 30 minutes in three straight games for just the second time this season, Plumlee has averaged only 15.7 minutes and was held scoreless at New Orleans.
ABOUT THE ROCKETS (39-18): While consistency is not always his thing, swingman Corey Brewer is giving Houston exactly what it wanted when acquiring the veteran from Minnesota in December. He had 13 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter against the Clippers and 10 in a decisive 15-1 run to begin the final period. Brewer has reached the 20-point mark three times in his last five games, one more than he did in his first 50 games combined this season.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Nets SF Thaddeus Young is averaging 14 points on 58.1 percent shooting in three games since coming over in a trade with Minnesota.
2. Rockets SF Kostas Papanikolaou (ankle) has missed two straight games.
3. Plumlee had 24 points and 10 rebounds in the loss to Houston last month.