Houston Rockets hit NBA-record 26 three-pointers in rout of Washington Wizards

The Houston Rockets nailed an NBA single-game record 26 three-pointers in 136-118 thrashing of the Washington Wizards.

NBA Conference standings

Washington Wizards 118-136 Houston Rockets

James Harden led the way with 35 points but received plenty of help from his team-mates as the Houston Rockets set an NBA single-game record by sinking 26 three-pointers in a 136-118 victory over the visiting Washington Wizards on Wednesday night.

Harden made 10 of his 18 shots, including 6-of-11 success on three-point attempts, to lead the Rockets to their fifth consecutive victory.

With nine assists, Harden finished just shy of posting a double-double, a feat accomplished by team-mates Clint Capela (20 points, 12 rebounds) and PJ Tucker (11 points, 11 rebounds).

All five starters scored in double figures for the Rockets, with Chris Paul adding 21 points and eight assists while Eric Gordon chipped in 16 points.

Houston shot 55.3 per cent overall, drilling 26 of 55 three-point tries. With the outcome well in hand and Houston reserves on the floor, the partisan crowd begged for three-pointers in the waning moments until Michael Carter-Williams sank the record-breaker with 31.1 seconds remaining.

Paul (5 of 9), Gordon (4 of 9), and Gerald Green (4 of 7) combined with Harden in the long-distance assault.

Indiana Pacers 96-99 Toronto Raptors

Fred VanVleet made a three-pointer with 25.9 seconds to play to give the injury-depleted Toronto a one-point lead, as the Raptors overcame a 17-point deficit to defeat the visiting Indiana Pacers 99-96.

Kawhi Leonard had 28 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and four steals for the Raptors. Pascal Siakam had 17 points and seven rebounds, Greg Monroe added 13 points and eight rebounds and VanVleet had 11 points.

Victor Oladipo had 20 points for the Pacers, who have lost two in a row after winning seven straight. Bojan Bogdanovic added 18 points, Domantas Sabonis had 12 points and 10 rebounds, while Myles Turner had 10 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks.

The Raptors trailed by 17 in the third quarter before cutting the deficit to 10 entering the fourth. VanVleet hit a three-pointer to put the Raptors within two with 5:21 left and Siakam tied the game with 4:11 left on a lay-up.

After Oladipo’s 20-footer gave Indiana a two-point lead, the Raptors three times missed chances to tie before VanVleet put them ahead by one with a three-pointer.

Toronto won a jump ball with 4.9 seconds play, and Danny Green made two free throws with 2.5 seconds left. VanVleet then blocked Bogdanovic’s deep attempt to tie at the buzzer.

Phoenix Suns 111-103 Boston Celtics

Kelly Oubre Jr nailed a three-pointer with 49.9 seconds left in his Phoenix debut, helping the Suns hold on for a 111-103 victory over the host Boston Celtics.

In running their winning streak to four games, the surging Suns fell immediately behind 11-2 before pulling ahead by as many as six in the second quarter and eight in the third.

When Josh Jackson and Jamal Crawford opened the fourth quarter with back-to-back three-pointers, Phoenix led 92-80 before holding on the rest of the way.

Boston got within five on two occasions in the final 1:49, but the Suns responded both times, first with three free throws from TJ Warren, then with Oubre’s decisive three-pointer.

Deandre Ayton had 23 points and a game-high 18 rebounds for the Suns, while Devin Booker went for a team-high 25 points to go with eight assists.

Kyrie Irving had a double-double for Boston with game highs in points with 29 and assists with 10. Jayson Tatum had 18 points while Gordon Hayward supplied 10 for the Celtics.

Brooklyn Nets 96-93 Chicago Bulls

Joe Harris hit the go-ahead basket with 43 seconds left as the visiting Brooklyn Nets continued their surge with a 96-93 win over the Chicago Bulls.

Harris’ driving layup off the glass provided the 23rd and final lead change in a gritty defensive battle that also featured 21 ties.

Following a timeout with 2.3 seconds remaining, Spencer Dinwiddie was fouled on the inbounds play and collected the final two of his game-high 27 points by draining a pair of free throws.

The Bulls had a chance at a miracle shot to tie the game, but a 70-foot inbounds pass glanced off the hands of Lauri Markkanen and time expired with the ball still on the floor. The final margin tied the biggest lead of the night for the Nets.

The victory was the seventh straight for the Nets, who have the longest active winning streak in the NBA.

Jarrett Allen had 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Nets while D’Angelo Russell (13 points) and Harris (11 points) also scored in double figures. Dunn scored 24 points for the Bulls, who have lost two straight and 12 of 14.

New Orleans Pelicans 115-123 Milwaukee Bucks

Giannis Antetokounmpo recorded 25 points, eight rebounds and eight assists to help the Milwaukee Bucks post a 123-115 victory over the visiting New Orleans Pelicans.

Malcolm Brogdon added 16 points and seven rebounds and Khris Middleton had 14 points for Milwaukee, who won for the fifth time in the past six games.

Anthony Davis registered 27 points and 11 rebounds in 29 minutes for New Orleans despite missing the second quarter and the first half of the third due to illness. Jrue Holiday had 25 points and 12 assists for New Orleans.

The Bucks shot 50.6 per cent from the field and made 13 of 33 three-point attempts. New Orleans made 19 of 42 three-point attempts and shot 46.7 per cent overall.

Milwaukee used an 11-0 run to turn a one-point deficit into a 117-107 lead with 2:56 left. D. Wilson scored back-to-back buckets and Brogdon followed with a lay-up to cap the run.

Holiday drained a three-pointer to bring the Pelicans within 119-113 with 1:01 left. But Middleton hit two free throws with 26.8 seconds left and the Bucks went on to close it out.

Detroit Pistons 129-123 (OT) Minnesota Timberwolves

Blake Griffin poured in 34 points and Reggie Bullock had a career-high 33 as the Detroit Pistons topped the Minnesota Timberwolves 129-123 in overtime.

The Pistons’ Reggie Jackson scored his 6,000th career point during the first half. He contributed 24 points and six assists, while Andre Drummond supplied 16 points and 16 rebounds.

Drummond’s basket in the final second of regulation sent the game to overtime.

Derrick Rose had 33 points and seven assists to lead Minnesota. Robert Covington tossed in 22 points, Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins added 16 apiece and Dario Saric had 15.

Drummond made a free throw with 2:06 left in overtime to give Detroit a one-point lead. Jackson’s lay-up 38 seconds later made it a three-point game.

The Timberwolves missed a couple of potential tying three-point shots before Jackson and Bullock sank free throws to secure the Pistons’ win.

New York Knicks 109-131 Philadelphia 76ers

Joel Embiid had 24 points and 10 rebounds to carry the Philadelphia 76ers to a crushing home 131-109 win over the New York Knicks.

It was the 24th time this season that Embiid reached at least 20 points. Embiid also owns 28 double-doubles this season. Ben Simmons turned in his fourth triple-double of the season with 13 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

Jimmy Butler added 20 and Landry Shamet contributed a career-high 17 for the Sixers, who had dropped three of four heading into this game. The Sixers improved to 15-3 at home.

Tim Hardaway Jr paced the Knicks with 27 points while rookie Kevin Knox added 21. Enes Kanter had 15 for the Knicks, who have lost eight of their last nine games.

Cleveland Cavaliers 99-110 Charlotte Hornets

Kemba Walker snapped out of a recent slump with 30 points as the host Charlotte Hornets ended a two-game losing streak with a 110-99 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Walker erupted for 17 points in the third quarter, when the Hornets outscored the Cavs 41-29 to assume control. The Hornets scored only 41 points in the first half, a season low.

Walker missed his first seven attempts against the Cavs, but he got hot in the second and third quarters and finished 11-of-26 from the floor for the night.

Charlotte also got double-doubles from Jeremy Lamb and Marvin Williams. Lamb finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, and Williams had 18 points and 10 rebounds.

Jordan Clarkson led Cleveland with 20 points. Jaron Blossomgame scored 15, Cedi Osman 13, Rodney Hood 12 and Collin Sexton 11. Larry Nance Jr finished with 10 points and 15 rebounds.

San Antonio Spurs 129-90 Orlando Magic

LaMarcus Aldridge scored 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting in just three quarters of play as the visiting San Antonio Spurs stayed hot from three-point territory while posting an easy 129-90 victory over the Orlando Magic.

Marco Belinelli scored 18 for San Antonio, while DeMar DeRozan and Bryn Forbes added 17 points each and Rudy Gay hit for 14 points for the Spurs.

San Antonio, the league’s best three-point shooting team, canned 12 of 19 (63.2 per cent) from beyond the arc in the win and outshot the Magic 64.9 per cent to 38.2 per cent overall.

DJ Augustin led the Magic with 17 points, with Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier scoring 12 each and Jonathan Isaac adding 10 points for Orlando.

Oklahoma City Thunder 132-113 Sacramento Kings

Forced into an expanded role thanks to a pair of suspensions, Paul George turned in yet another big-time performance for the Oklahoma City Thunder, scoring 43 in a 132-113 road win over the Sacramento Kings.

While George started in his typical spot, he was forced to also serve as the Thunder’s backup point guard after the NBA handed down one-game suspensions to both Dennis Schroder and Raymond Felton earlier in the day.

George scored 15 of his points in the second quarter, as Oklahoma City outscored the Kings 35-19 in the quarter to build a lead that grew as large as 22 in the frame.

Russell Westbrook had his eighth triple-double of the season, with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 17 assists. Nine of Westbrook’s assists came in the fourth quarter after the Kings pulled within single-digits of the Thunder.

Steven Adams had 20 points and a career-high 23 rebounds. Jerami Grant added 22 points, going 9-of-11 from the floor.

Buddy Hield scored a career-high 37 points for Sacramento, hitting seven three-pointers. De’Aaron Fox added 28 points and 12 assists in the loss.

Memphis Grizzlies 92-99 Portland Trail Blazers

Damian Lillard scored 24 points to lead the Portland Trail Blazers to a 99-92 victory over the visiting Memphis Grizzlies.

Meyers Leonard came off the bench to chip in 12 points and eight rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who won their third consecutive game.

Mike Conley scored 23 points and Marc Gasol had 14 points and nine boards for the Grizzlies, who lost their fourth straight game and fell for the sixth time in seven outings.

The Blazers carried a 74-71 lead into the fourth quarter, then scored the first 11 points of the final period to go on top 85-71.

The Grizzlies closed within 91-80 on a pair of free throws by Gasol with 4:30 left. Jaren Jackson Jr buried a three-pointer to draw Memphis to within 92-83, but Lillard scored on a lay-up, then followed with a trey to make it 97-83 with 3:18 to play.

The Grizzlies got no closer than seven points the rest of the way.

Golden State Warriors 103-108 Utah Jazz

Rudy Gobert stopped a Golden State run with a late dunk as the Utah Jazz used superior three-point shooting to record a 108-103 victory over the Warriors in Salt Lake City.

Jae Crowder, Joe Ingles and Kyle Korver combined for 13 three-pointers, helping the Jazz outscore the Warriors 48-30 from beyond the arc.

A three-pointer by Ingles made it an 11-point game with 9:14 to go, but the Warriors chipped away, rallying to get as close as 100-98 on a jumper by Kevin Durant with 4:05 remaining.

But Gobert got behind the Golden State defense for a dunk, Ingles added a lay-up for a six-point lead, and the Jazz held the Warriors scoreless over the final 1:13, including a missed three-point attempt by Durant that could have tied the score.

Ingles finished with a team-high 20 points, Crowder had 18, and Gobert and Donovan Mitchell added 17 apiece for the Jazz, who won their fourth straight home game.

Crowder, who also had 11 rebounds, and Gobert, who pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds, recorded double-doubles for Utah.

Stephen Curry went for a game-high 32 points and Durant added 30 for the Warriors. Klay Thompson added 12 points for Golden State, while Draymond Green grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds.

Sky Sports is the home of the NBA in the UK with live coverage throughout the week, including selected live games free to all Sky subscribers via Sky Sports Mix. www.skysports.com/nba will be your home for news, reports, video and features throughout the season while you can follow us @SkySportsNBA

(c) Sky News 2018: Houston Rockets hit NBA-record 26 three-pointers in rout of Washington Wizards