The Houston Rockets beat the Washington Wizards 123-118 on Monday night.
Alperen Sengun scored 32 points and Kevin Durant added 30 as Houston secured its seventh straight win over Washington. The Rockets never trailed after the second quarter in a game that grew increasingly physical after halftime. Sengun also grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds as Houston dominated the glass 59-27 and outscored the Wizards 62-40 in the paint.
Amen Thompson contributed 22 points and 12 rebounds, while Reed Sheppard had 19 points and 10 assists. Houston played without Jabari Smith Jr. but had enough firepower to blunt every Washington rally.
Wizards Fight But Fall Short
Bilal Coulibaly led Washington with a season-high 23 points, including five three-pointers. Sharife Cooper added 21 off the bench in just 17 minutes.
The Wizards, missing leading scorer Alex Sarr, hit 19 of 35 from beyond the arc and led 30-26 after the first quarter. However, they dropped their fifth straight game.
Tempers Flare In Heated Third Quarter
Tempers flared midway through the third quarter when Tari Eason shoved Jamir Watkins to the floor twice in quick succession. Eason was assessed two technical fouls and ejected.
Meanwhile, Trae Young, who earlier announced on Instagram that he would make his Wizards debut Thursday against the Jazz, was also thrown out for leaving the bench area.
The scuffles did little to shift momentum, as Durant and Sengun combined for key baskets down the stretch to keep Houston in control.
Washington cut the deficit to 11 late, but Durant responded with three free throws. Sengun converted a three-point play to stretch the lead to 116-102 with three minutes remaining.
Durant later received a technical foul with 29 seconds left after a late shove, and the Wizards closed on an 8-0 run. Regardless, the outcome had already been decided.
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