OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – James Harden scored 41 points, and the Houston Rockets overcame Russell Westbrook’s triple-double to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 115-112 on Sunday.
Harden and Westbrook, the league’s top two scorers, both entered the game averaging 27.5 points. Harden made 12 of 22 shots and 6 of 9 3-pointers before fouling out with 33 seconds left. The Rockets hung on to win for the seventh time in eight games.
Westbrook finished with 40 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds. It was his 11th triple-double of the season and the 18th of his career. Enes Kanter added 21 points and 17 rebounds for the Thunder, who lost their third straight. Their lead over New Orleans for the No. 8 spot in the Western Conference was cut to a half game.
According to STATS, Westbrook’s 11 triple-doubles are the most for a player in a season since Jason Kidd had 13 in 2007-08, and his nine triple-doubles in a 20-game span are the most since Chicago’s Michael Jordan had 11 in 15 games from March 25-April 21, 1989.
The Rockets led 89-80 early in the fourth quarter before Westbrook re-entered the game. The Thunder chipped away, and Westbrook tied the game at 100 with a 3-pointer with just more than three minutes to play.