James Harden scored 34 points to go along with eight assists and six rebounds as the Houston Rockets defeated the Milwaukee Bucks, 117-103, on Saturday.
Donatas Motiejunas netted 20 points, Jason Terry had 18 and Trevor Ariza chipped in with 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Rockets, who have won four of their last five.
Jabari Parker led the Bucks with 19 points, Ersan Ilyasova dropped in 18 and Giannis Antetokounmpo tallied 17 with seven rebounds.
Milwaukee had its three-game winning streak snapped.
Houston made over 50 percent of its shots in the first quarter, limiting the Bucks to 40.9 percent, and led 28-23 after 12 minutes.
Harden's 3-pointer gave the Rockets a 53-44 lead late in the second, but Antetokounmpo's dunk at the other end made it a seven-point spread at the half.
Houston then opened the third quarter on a 15-6 run, with Harden capping the spurt with a four-point play that helped the visitors extend their margin to 68-52.
The Rockets maintained a double-digit margin throughout the quarter and brought an 85-72 lead into the fourth. The margin swelled to as many as 19 in the final frame as Houston won it going away.
Game Notes
Antetokounmpo and Larry Sanders were both whistled for technical fouls after the two got in a heated exhange with Harden late in the fourth quarter ... Houston shot 44-of-87 from the floor ... Houston's Joey Dorsey and Sanders both had a game-high three blocks ... The Rockets outrebounded the Bucks 44-32.
[SportsNetwork.com]
