NBA Game Summary - Houston at Washington
Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - James Harden had 24 points and six assists in the Houston Rockets' 99-91 victory over the Washington Wizards on Sunday.
Corey Brewer added 15 points and five rebounds off the bench for the Rockets, who have won four in a row. Josh Smith tallied 14 points and 10 boards.
"It's nice to win the games, but it would be really nice to get healthy. That's our biggest thing," said Rockets coach Kevin McHale.
John Wall ended with 25 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds for the Wizards, who sit fifth in the Eastern Conference. Otto Porter and Bradley Beal each scored 15 points.
After the Wizards pulled within four, 79-75, early in the fourth quarter, Pablo Prigioni and Brewer made consecutive 3-pointers to spark a 14-2 Houston run. Harden capped the surge with two free throws to make it a 93-77 contest with 5:56 left.
Washington battled back and got within six in the final minute.
"We were running things that I've never seen before. We weren't focused on what we needed to do from an offensive standpoint," said Wizards coach Randy Wittman.
With the score tied 15-15, the Rockets ended the first quarter on a 13-5 run. Houston then started the second on an 8-2 surge to build a 36-22 lead.
The Rockets shot 58.5 percent from the field in the first half en route to a 59-46 margin.
The Wizards stayed within striking distance and got within 76-67 heading to the fourth.