Rockets at Timberwolves
The Houston Rockets will try to extend a pair of lengthy winning streaks and follow up a record-setting shooting performance when they visit the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday. With Friday's 122-100 home win over the New Orleans Pelicans, the Rockets had won nine in a row for the first time since their franchise-record 22-game run in 2008.
James Harden and Eric Gordon scored 29 points apiece and combined to hit 13 of Houston's NBA-record 24 3-pointers (in an NBA-record 61 attempts), the squad's second straight game with at least 20 makes from long range. "This is a fun style of play," Gordon told reporters. "Things like that can happen. We can still be better. We'll break that record again, for sure." Houston has also won seven in a row over Minnesota, including three meetings last season in which it averaged 117.3 points. The Timberwolves erased a 21-point deficit - the largest overcome in the NBA this season - in Tuesday's 99-94 win at Chicago, with Zach LaVine scoring 24 points to help his team snap a four-game slide.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, ROOT (Houston), FSN North (Minnesota)
ABOUT THE ROCKETS (20-7): Harden also had 13 assists and 11 rebounds Friday night to record his 15th triple-double with Houston, breaking a tie atop the franchise leaderboard with Rockets legend Hakeem Olajuwon. Harden is averaging 13.2 assists over his last five games and backcourt mate Patrick Beverley has chipped in 15 in the past two contests. In last season's three-game series sweep of the Timberwolves, Harden averaged 30 points and 10.3 assists.
ABOUT THE TIMBERWOLVES (7-18): A road win over the Bulls followed by a rare three-day break between games has Minnesota feeling good about itself for a change. "We came in today and had a different swagger about us," forward Karl-Anthony Towns told the Star Tribune at practice earlier in the week. "A different swagger that we have never had. An arrogance in a way that great teams have." Towns had 16 points and 12 rebounds in the victory but he went 1-of-8 from 3-point range and is 4-for-22 over the last six games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Houston F Trevor Ariza is averaging 18.5 points while making 10-of-21 3-pointers over the last two games.
2. Towns is averaging 23.2 points and 13.1 rebounds at home.
3. Houston is 4-0 in the second game of back-to-backs.