HOUSTON -- Houston Rockets interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff responded under his breath when asked if there was an easy way to coax consistency from fourth-year forward Terrence Jones, a subtle indication that Jones' uneven performances remain as perplexing as they are predictable.
Jones delivered an enthusiastic effort and teamed with guard James Harden to carry the Houston Rockets down the stretch of their 102-95 victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Monday night at Toyota Center.
Harden finished with a game-high 36 points plus five rebounds and seven assists while Jones chipped in 17 points, six rebounds and two blocks off the bench as Houston (15-14) recorded its sixth consecutive home win and 10th successive series victory over the Hornets (15-12).
Both Jones and Harden produced critical three-point plays inside the final 90 seconds, with Jones turning a spinning, twisting layup and subsequent free throw into a 91-89 lead with 1:25 remaining. Harden added a free throw after his driving layup through a Marvin Williams foul gave Houston the lead for good at 93-91 with 31.6 seconds to play.
"Finding your time is a challenge sometimes but it's definitely something I want to do more," Jones said. "Trying to be aggressive within the offense is what I'm still working on."
When former Rockets guard Jeremy Lin pushed Charlotte to an 89-88 lead with a free throw at the 1:41 mark, the Hornets' first lead since late in the first half, Jones responded despite a foul from Hornets forward Cody Zeller. Harden made the pass that yielded Jones' timely basket.
After Harden gave Houston a 94-91 lead with his free throw, Jones blocked Zeller at the rim with 26.9 seconds left to preserve that edge.
"Defensively he's moving, he's active, he's communicating," Harden said of Jones. "Offensively he's cutting and setting screens, rolling to the basket. He just has the whole, entire game and obviously he made the game-winning block. He was active. He was everywhere today."
The Hornets lost for the fourth time in five games. They were paced by guard Kemba Walker (14 points, six assists and five rebounds) and Lin, who added 13 points with five assists in reserve.
The Hornets shot just 34.9 percent from the floor, including 12 for 41 (29.3 percent) from behind the 3-point line. Their offensive woes were defined by two unsightly stretches in the second and third periods.
After reserve guard Jeremy Lamb gave Charlotte a 31-27 lead with his three-point play at the 11:50 mark of the second, the Hornets did not score again until Lamb drilled a 3-pointer with 6:38 left in the first half.
Through that span, the Rockets enjoyed a 10-0 run, but after guard Brian Roberts scored in transition for Charlotte with 4:50 to play in the half, the Hornets reclaimed the lead at 39-37. It took a driving layup from Harden for the Rockets to push ahead 45-44 at the intermission.
Charlotte followed by recording just two field goals over the second half of the third quarter. Houston failed to capitalize, adding only four points to its 57-52 advantage to lead 69-60 heading into the final period.
"We fought hard," Hornets coach Steve Clifford said. "I thought their defense was really good. We struggled to consistently get good shots."
Rookie forward Frank Kaminsky carried the Hornets offensively for nearly six minutes, scoring all 12 Charlotte points between a pair of Nicolas Batum free throws with 2:44 left in the third and two free throws from Lamb with 8:13 left that cut the Rockets' lead to 79-71.
Kaminsky keyed a 13-0 run with a three-point play, converting a free throw after his driving layup on a crafty inbounds play. When Charlotte forward Spencer Hawes hit a 3-pointer with 6:15 left, the Rockets' 79-66 lead had evaporated. Houston needed one final push to seal the win.
"I thought we were in a good spot," Walker said. "We brought the game all the way back and tied it, but I thought Houston made some really good plays. We made James give the ball up, but his other teammates just made some plays."
NOTES: Having dropped three of their last four games entering the week, the Hornets could count a recent spate of turnovers as an issue. Charlotte leads the league in turnover rate (12.0 per 100 possessions), but averaged 16.5 turnovers in losses to the Wizards and Magic, with its ball security in the pick-and-roll especially wayward. ... The Rockets remain committed to starting F Clint Capela alongside C Dwight Howard, with that tandem in the lineup for the 11th time Monday. Houston interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff lauded the defensive rebounding prowess of Capela and Howard in concert, but Capela is averaging fewer total rebounds per 48 minutes as a starter (12.7) than as a reserve (13.0). ... After a sluggish start in his return from back surgery, Rockets F Donatas Motiejunas appears to have found his footing, averaging 10.4 points in 18 minutes over his last five games entering Monday.
