The Houston Rockets (32 - 32) defeated the Philadelphia 76ers (8 - 56) 118 - 104 on Wednesday. Even though they'd lost 12 consecutive games heading into Wednesday's contest, the Sixers had been competitive in several of them, with their oft - maligned offense showing signs of life on a more consistent basis. Their improvement had persisted in recent outings despite the multi - game absences of Jahlil Okafor (shin) and Nerlens Noel (knee), and they reaped the benefit of Noel's return Wednesday. Philadelphia got off to another strong start against the Rockets, jumping out to a 27 - 21 lead after one period. However, Houston's superior talent eventually wore down the Sixers, with James Harden and Dwight Howard spearheading the charge. The Rockets' dominance during the second and third periods, which they won by a combined margin of 72 - 52, provided them enough of a cushion to hold on for the high - scoring victory. Harden's 29 points paced the Rockets, and he supplemented his scoring total with nine rebounds, eight assists, a steal and a block. Howard was next with a 21 - point, 18 - rebound double - double that also included an assist, a steal and a pair of blocks. Patrick Beverley filled out the stat sheet in continuing his recent stretch of strong all - around play, supplying 16 points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals. Trevor Ariza rounded things out for the first unit with 15 points, three assists, a rebound, two steals and a block. K.J. McDaniels paced the Houston bench with 12 points and three rebounds in an efficient 17 minutes. The Rockets are in fourth place in the Western Conference's Southwest Division, and retain a hold on the eighth seed in the conference. They next head to Boston, where they'll take on the Celtics on Friday night. Ish Smith led the way with the Sixers with 21 points, five assists, two rebounds and a steal, but did turn the ball over six times. Robert Covington and Noel were next with a pair of 17 - point efforts, with the former adding seven rebounds, four assists, four steals and a block, and the latter tallying nine rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks. The Sixers' big man notably played 32 minutes in his return. Jerami Grant received another start in Okafor's stead, posting 13 points, three rebounds, two assists, a steal and a block. Isaiah Canaan led the reserves with 14 points, four assists and a rebound. The Sixers remain in last place in the Eastern Conference's Atlantic Division. They're home again on Friday against the division rival Brooklyn Nets.
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