Harden’s triple-double helps Houston to 8th straight win

Houston Rockets’ James Harden (13) is fouled by Sacramento Kings’ Kosta Koufos during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2016, in Houston. AP

HOUSTON, Texas—James Harden’s latest game left him tied in Houston’s record books with perhaps the greatest Rocket of all.

Harden had a triple-double – 15 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds – in just three quarters to lead the Rockets to their eighth straight win, 132-98 over the short-handed Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night.

It was Harden’s fifth triple-double this season and the 14th of his career, which ties him with Hakeem Olajuwon for most in franchise history. Harden acknowledged how special it is to be mentioned in the same breath as The Dream.

“Yes, obviously all-time Rockets great, best to ever do it (in) a Rocket uniform and one of the best to ever do it period,” Harden said. “So just honored. It’s a credit to my teammates who helped me and coaches and just trying to win. That’s all.”

Houston’s winning streak is the longest current one in the NBA and the team’s longest since 2014.

“The biggest thing I’m happy with is we had 40 assists on 50 buckets, so they’re sharing the ball,” coach Mike D’Antoni said. “James does what he does every night and just a lot of good stuff going on.”

Harden’s triple-double came in 29 minutes and 52 seconds of play, which is his second when playing less than 30 minutes.

Houston led by 15 points in the third quarter before using a 10-4 run to push it to 76-53 with about 7 minutes left in the quarter. The Rockets began to pour it on after that, outscoring the Kings 18-5 over the next 3 1/2 minutes to make it 94-58. Trevor Ariza scored the first five points in that span and capped it with a 3-pointer.

Harden grabbed his 10th rebound soon after that and got one more late in the third before heading to the bench at the end of the quarter to end his night.

The Kings played without three starters with Rudy Gay (hip flexor strain) and Ben McLemore (left quadriceps contusion) out with injuries and DeMarcus Cousins getting a planned day of rest. They were led by Garrett Temple’s 20 points.

“There are times when teams are going to have to rest people and that gives other guys an opportunity to step up,” Sacramento’s Matt Barnes said. “We have to weather the storm until Ben and Rudy get back and I think DeMarcus is playing in the next game. We have to pick up the pieces and continue to play hard and improve.”

Ryan Anderson had 22 points and Sam Dekker had a career-high 19 for Houston.

Harden has thrived running D’Antoni’s fast-paced offense and has piled up 53 assists in the last four games.