James Harden scored his second career triple-double on Thursday to help the Houston Rockets increase the Philadelphia 76ers’ losing streak to 26 games.
Harden scored a team-high 26 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and dished out 10 assists as the Houston beat Philadelphia 120-98 at home.
Harden only needed to play the first three quarters as the Rockets extended their winning streak to five games.
James Anderson’s game-high 30 points for Philadelphia were not enough to avoid their 26th straight loss of the season, a league record set by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2010-11 season.
Philadelphia last win came on 29 January at Boston Celtics, and they will host the Detroit Pistons on Saturday.
The Rockets improved their record to 49-22, and will not play until Saturday when they host the Los Angeles Clippers who bounced back from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter for a 109-103 win at Dallas Mavericks.
Chris Paul had game highs 31 points and nine assists for the Clippers, and Blake Griffin added 18 points and 13 rebounds as they edged Dallas for the third time in the past three meetings this season.
Vince Carter scored 23 points off the bench, and German Dirk Nowitzki added 21 points as the Mavericks dropped out the playoff places in the Western Conference, standing behind eighth seed Phoenix Suns.
Elsewhere, the Milwaukee Bucks snapped their eight-game losing streak with a 108-105 home win over the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Portland Trail Blazers overcame the Atlanta Hawks 100-85 away from home.
