James Harden had 30 points and Houston broke out of their worst slump of the season by beating New Orleans 100-82 on Friday.
The Rockets, who had lost eight of nine and trailed by double digits in 12 straight games, led almost all the way this time.
Jeremy Lin spurred the team early, aggressively creating plays for both himself and his teammates, with 13 points, eight assists, five boards and six steals.
Lin averages 1.96 steals per game, ranking No. 3 in the Western Conference. The last time he made six was when the team faced Denver Nuggets early this season.
Patrick Patterson scored 18 points and Carlos Delfino 14.
Harden made a season-high eight turnovers, but also handed out eight assists. He scored an impressive 12 points in the third quarter, to give his team an 80-65 lead.
“Guys found me. We got some shots to fall. This game was probably our best defensive game all year as far as four quarters really locking in,” Harden said. “It’s just a good feeling when you play well, when you haven’t been playing well on both ends of the floor.”
Speaking about his turnovers, Harden said: “Sometimes I tried to do too much, but for the most part our team played great defensively and offensively for four quarters. We needed it a lot just for our confidence.”
The win was only Houston’s second road victory against a Western Conference team this year.
Meanwhile, Kyle Korver scored 27 points and the Atlanta Hawks overcame a 27-point deficit in the first half to beat Boston 123-111 in double overtime, handing the Celtics their sixth straight loss.
Jeff Teague had 23 points for Atlanta before fouling out in the first overtime. Al Horford had 24 points and 13 rebounds. Josh Smith, who opened the second overtime with a three-point play, had 17 points and 14 rebounds.
Kevin Garnett had 24 points and 10 rebounds, but fouled out in the second overtime as the Celtics were left with their longest losing streak in six years. Rajon Rondo had 16 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds for his fifth triple-double of the season.
Korver had all of his career-high eight three-pointers in the second half, setting a franchise record, and five in the fourth quarter.
Tony Parker returned from a cut above the same eye he injured in a nightclub incident last summer and scored 23 points to lead San Antonio to a 113-107 win over Dallas.
Parker missed about a quarter in the first half when he took three stitches above his left eye after a collision with Elton Brand on a drive. He nearly lost the eye in June when shards of glass embedded in his cornea after he got caught in a bottle-throwing melee in New York.
Tim Duncan stayed home with a sore right knee, but DeJuan Blair made up for his absence by scoring a season-high 22 points.
Rodrigue Beaubois led the Mavericks with a season-high 19 points.
In other games it was:
‧ Heat 110, Pistons 88
‧ Cavaliers 113, Bucks 108
‧ Wizards 114, T-Wolves 101
‧ Bulls 103, Warriors 87
‧ Grizzlies 101, Nets 77
‧ Lakers 102, Jazz 84
‧ Thunder 105, Kings 95
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