Harden’s 50-point triple-double dethrones Kings

The Rockets won a seesaw affair Saturday evening over the Kings with a 119-108 final score.

It was a game of runs that pushed the Kings and Rockets back and forth throughout the whole game, but it was James Harden’s 50-point triple-double that pushed the Rockets over the edge.

Harden started off hot with a 31-point first half but the Kings kept it close with 15 three pointers on 31 attempts.

The Kings took the lead in the third quarter with a 10-0 run in the final two and a half minutes.

But, the Rockets went into overdrive.

The defense, which was lackluster in the first three quarters, suddenly became sensational.

Sacramento managed just 15 points in the final frame and Houston pulled off a 17-6 run to ice the game.

Outside of Harden, the starting unit performed well. Clint Capela scored 24 rebounds and grabbed 15 rebounds, and Chris Paul posted 22 points.

The starting lineup picked up the slack from the bench, which managed just three points. The Rockets managed just six points outside of Capela, Harden, Paul and Eric Gordon.

For the Kings, Bogdan Bogdanovic scored a team-high 24 points off the bench while Marvin Bagley III and De’Aaron Fox dropped double-doubles.

With the win, the Rockets have won seven of their last nine games and have the chance to jump back into the 3-seed with a Trail Blazers loss to the Pistons.

The Rockets and Kings battle again Tuesday night in Sacramento. Tipoff is at 9:00 p.m. CT.

Box Score