Mavericks at Rockets
James Harden isn't always the most efficient shooter but the Houston guard isn't bothered by it as long as the Rockets win. Harden will attempt to relocate his shot when Houston seeks its sixth straight victory and 11th in the past 13 games with a home game against the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday.
Harden was just 6-of-23 from the field and committed eight turnovers on Friday but finished with 21 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds as the Rockets registered a 102-99 road win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. "I'm more than just a scorer, you know what I'm saying?" Harden said in a postgame television interview. "I can obviously make plays and rebound the basketball, just do the little things. We have other guys who can step up. With our team, I'm not going to always shoot the ball well." Dallas owns the second-worst record in the NBA but delivered a strong 111-103 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Friday. The performance was pleasing to coach Rick Carlisle after his squad was drubbed 120-89 by the Sacramento Kings two nights earlier.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSN Southwest (Dallas), ROOT (Houston)
ABOUT THE MAVERICKS (5-17): The poor showing against Sacramento called for a bounce-back performance and Dallas delivered by committing just eight turnovers and knocking down 15 3-pointers. "Our guys have to have pride," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said afterward. "After getting blasted by 31 at home, we came back with a great effort. We did everything you need to do to beat a quality team like Indiana that is great at turning you over." Shooting guard Wesley Matthews made five 3-pointers and tied his season high of 26 points and small forward Harrison Barnes scored 25 points for his third 20-point outing in the past four games.
ABOUT THE ROCKETS (16-7): Houston was pretty thrilled with the emotional victory in Oklahoma City and scrappy guard Patrick Beverley was quick to get everybody in line and recall there's a game to play Saturday. "It was time to go home and get ready for Dallas," Beverley told reporters. "I told everyone this win doesn't mean anything if we fall short (Saturday). We want to try and keep the streak going. Back-to-back against any team in the NBA, no matter what the record is, is always tough." Beverley tallied just three points on 1-of-8 shooting against the Thunder but contributed 12 rebounds and five assists while playing his typical pestering style of defense that prompted Thunder star Russell Westbrook to 8-of-25 shooting.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Harden averaged 27 points as the Rockets swept a back-to-back from the Mavericks in late October.
2. Houston had a poor success rate from 3-point range versus Oklahoma City (11-of-42) but extended its NBA record with at least 10 3-pointers to 22 consecutive games.
3. Dallas G Seth Curry (knee) contributed four points and six assists in 25 minutes against Indiana after missing the previous four games.