Houston beat Atlanta 121-114 on the second night of a back-to-back, led by as many as 20 and never trailed after the opening minutes. The win moves the Rockets to 3-0 and into the West's top seed.
First half
Houston scored 30 and 29 in the first two quarters and went to the break up 59-48. An 8-0 burst in the second, from 41-38 to 49-38, opened the gap. Reed Sheppard drove the spacing early and finished 5-of-11 from deep. Atlanta managed only 22 in the second quarter, and Houston carried an 11-point cushion into halftime.
Third quarter
The lead grew to 20 late in the third, when it reached 85-65. Atlanta answered with 33 in the quarter and cut it to 92-81 at the horn. Kevin Durant was the steady hand: 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting, 3-of-7 from three, a perfect 3-of-3 at the line, and only two turnovers in 37 minutes. He finished at +19.
Fourth quarter
Atlanta used a 9-0 run, from 117-103 to 117-112, to turn a comfortable night into a clutch finish. Jalen Johnson ended with 26 points and 16 assists. Houston's closers were Amen Thompson, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Jabari Smith Jr., Durant and Tari Eason. Durant hit two free throws after Dyson Daniels fouled out, and Eason dunked off a Smith pass for 121-112 with eight seconds left.
The grades
Sheppard gets an A: 19 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 steals, +19 in 30 minutes. Durant earns an A-. Eason gets a B+ for 19 off the bench, though he missed all three of his threes and was -1. Thompson gets a B: 4-of-12 from the field, but 9-of-9 at the line plus 11 rebounds and 6 assists. Bogdanovic was the night's worst mark at -6, despite 3-of-5 from three.
What it changes
Houston is 3-0 and first in the West, with Minnesota sixth at 2-0 and Phoenix tenth at 1-1. Alperen Sengun added 17 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists at +13. The bench produced 32 points to the starters' 89. Steven Adams, Fred VanVleet and Marcus Smart are listed out, with Oct. 26 as the return date.
What was the score of the Rockets-Hawks game on Oct. 24?
Houston won 121-114 in Atlanta, leading by as many as 20 points. The Hawks cut the margin to five late with a 9-0 run, but the Rockets closed it out.
Who led the Rockets against the Hawks?
Kevin Durant scored 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting, and Reed Sheppard added 19 points, 7 assists and 5 threes. Both finished at +19.
