The Houston Rockets (9 - 1) defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder (3 - 8) 69 - 65 on Sunday at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City. This was an all - around ugly game for both teams, marked by a few scuffles and technicals along the way. Both teams shot very poorly, as Houston shot 29 percent from the field and 20 percent from the three - point line, while Oklahoma City shot 29 percent from the field and 16 percent from beyond the arc. The Rockets did take a 54 - 45 rebounding advantage by the end of the game, which may have allowed them the ugly victory. For the Rockets, James Harden had a game - high 19 points, while also adding nine rebounds and five assists. He struggled with his three - point shot though, as he only went 2 - for - 9 from behind the three - point line. Dwight Howard came one rebound shy of his eigth double - double of the season, as he finished with 12 points and nine rebounds. He struggled offensively and could n't reach his season average of 19 points per game. Trevor Ariza chipped in 11 points, but also shot pretty poorly, as he went 4 - for - 11 from the field and 1 - for - 4 from the three - point line. The Rockets bench had a meager eight total points, with Francisco Garcia scoring six of those eight, so they did n't offer much help to the starters. Patrick Beverley (hamstring) returned to action for the Rockets after missing four game. He played 29 minutes as the starting point guard. The Thunder were led by Lance Thomas and Reggie Jackson, who scored 15 points a piece. Jackson had a surprising season - high 11 rebounds, but shot only 3 - for - 11 from the field. Most of his points came from the free - throw line as he converted on a perfect nine for nine. The 15 points for Thomas were also a season - high for him, although like Jackson, he got most of his production from the free - throw line, where he made 7 - of - 8.The only other Thunder player to reach double figures was Serge Ibaka, as he contributed 10 points and six rebounds. Continuing to come off the bench since returning from MCL surgery, Anthony Morrow struggled mightily as well, shooting only 1 - for - 9 from the field and 0 - for - 2 from beyond the arc for four points. Normally, scoring only 65 points would mean a blowout, but surprisingly, it kept the Thunder very much alive in this one. The Rockets' next game will be on the road against the Memphis Grizzles on Monday, while the Thunder will also go on the road to Utah to play the Jazz on Tuesday.
["TeamStat(G,'Thunder') has 16 Percentage of 3 points ,has 29 Percentage of field goals ,has 8 Losses ,has 65 Total points ,has 45 Rebounds ,has 3 Wins ."
 "TeamStat(G,'Rockets') has 20 Percentage of 3 points ,has 29 Percentage of field goals ,has 1 Losses ,has 69 Total points ,has 54 Rebounds ,has 9 Wins ."
 "PlayerStat(G,'Trevor Ariza') has 4 Assists ,has 1 3-pointers attempted ,has 11 3-pointers made ,has 4 Field goals attempted ,has 11 Field goals made ."
 "PlayerStat(G,'Dwight Howard') has 12 Assists ,has 9 3-pointers attempted ."
 "PlayerStat(G,'James Harden') has 5 Assists ,has 9 3-pointers attempted ,has 2 3-pointers made ,has 19 Field goals attempted ,has 9 Field goals made ."
 "PlayerStat(G,'Patrick Beverley') has 4 Assists ,has 29 3-pointers attempted ."
 "PlayerStat(G,'Francisco Garcia') has 6 Assists ,has 6 3-pointers attempted ."
 "PlayerStat(G,'Lance Thomas') has 7 Assists ,has 15 3-pointers attempted ."
 "PlayerStat(G,'Serge Ibaka') has 10 Assists ,has 6 3-pointers attempted ."
 "PlayerStat(G,'Reggie Jackson') has 11 Assists ,has 3 3-pointers attempted ,has 9 3-pointers made ,has 9 Field goals attempted ,has 15 Field goals made ,has 11 Free throws attempted ."
 "PlayerStat(G,'Anthony Morrow') has 2 Assists ,has 0 3-pointers attempted ,has 9 3-pointers made ,has 1 Field goals attempted ,has 4 Field goals made ."]