Harden, Westbrook combine to stop Nuggets

LOS ANGELES: James Harden scored 35 points and Russell Westbrook finished with 28 as the Houston Rockets cooled off the Denver Nuggets with a 130-104 win on Tuesday.

Harden also had six assists while Westbrook contributed seven helpers, avenging an earlier loss to the Nuggets.Nikola Jokic scored 21 points to lead Denver, who had won nine of their last 10 games. Denver defeated the Rockets 105-95 on November 20 by double-teaming Harden which put more pressure on his teammates to try and pick up the slack.

The Rockets moved the ball quickly on Tuesday, seizing control of the contest with a 19-3 burst to open the fourth quarter.Clint Capela had a double-double for Houston (16 points, 10 rebounds) while Isaiah Hartenstein finished with 16 points and 12 boards off the bench.

Monte Morris came off the bench to score 18 points for Denver. Paul Millsap had 13 points and nine boards for Denver while Jamal Murray and Will Barton totaled 22 points on 10-of-30 shooting.