Rockets at Nuggets
The Houston Rockets have a good chance to take over third place in the Western Conference standings, but they’ll need to take care of business against struggling teams like the Denver Nuggets, whom they visit Saturday night. Houston is tied for third with the Portland Trail Blazers, who suffered a significant injury when Wesley Matthews tore his Achilles tendon Thursday night. Denver has lost seven of nine and fired coach Brian Shaw this week.
Houston won back-to-back games against Denver in December, but the Rockets had Dwight Howard back then and he had at least 20 points and 10 rebounds in both games. James Harden has been carrying the team since Howard went down in January with knee problems, delivering his third triple-double of the season in Friday’s 10-point win against the visiting Detroit Pistons. He seems to enjoy playing against the Nuggets as well, producing a triple-double in the first meeting this season and coming back with 41 points against Denver four days later.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, ROOT Sports (Houston), Altitude (Denver)
ABOUT THE ROCKETS (42-20): Houston didn’t have Terrence Jones available when they last met the Nuggets, but he has been playing lately, despite dealing with a bothersome back. He’s averaging 20.2 points and 8.8 rebounds in the last five games and has even blocked nine shots in that span. Corey Brewer gave the Rockets a nice boost off the bench Friday night, scoring 15 points after four straight games in single digits.
ABOUT THE NUGGETS (22-40): Denver didn't seem willing or able to play defense Friday night, surrendering 120 points in a nine-point loss to the San Antonio Spurs, who came in averaging 100.8. The Nuggets still seem interested in scoring, however, shooting 52.3 percent from the floor against the Spurs to hit at least half their shots for just the second time in eight games. The organization seems determined to give third-year shooting guard Will Barton a long look as he played at least 20 minutes in the past eight games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Rockets are 5-0 this season when faced with a three-game losing streak.
2. The Nuggets are 14-7 this season when holding their opponent under 100 points.
3. Denver has lost 10 of its last 11 at home.