ROCKETS HAMMER MAVERICKS
Rockets extend win streak with commanding victory over Dallas
Mar 15, 2025, 1:57 pm
The Rockets beat the Mavericks, 133-96. Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images.
Tari Eason scored a career-high 30 points to lead the Houston Rockets to an easy 133-96 win over the Dallas Mavericks Friday night.
Jalen Green added 23 points with nine rebounds, despite sitting the entire fourth quarter to help the Rockets to their fifth straight win, tying their longest such streak of the season.
Houston led by double digits most of the night and was up by 16 in the third quarter before scoring the next seven points, with a 3 from Eason, to make it 80-57 midway through the quarter.
The Rockets were up by 21 later in the third before using a 10-0 run to push the lead to 96-65 near the end of the period, and most of their starters didn't play in the fourth.
Brandon Williams scored 25 points off the bench for the Mavericks as they lost for the seventh time in eight games. Klay Thompson was 2 of 16 for five points with nine rebounds.
Takeaways
Mavericks: Dallas continues to struggle with most of its top players out with injuries and lost another one Friday with coach Jason Kidd saying that Dante Exum sustained a broken left hand that will likely end his season.
Rockets: Houston has taken advantage of a schedule with six straight home games, going 4-0 so far on the homestand as it tries to climb the Western Conference standings.
Key moment
Houston was in control of the game from the start but put it out of reach with its 37-point third quarter.
Key stat
The Rockets had 29 second-chance points to just two by Dallas on a night Houston had a 17-6 advantage in offensive rebounds.
Up next
Houston hosts Chicago on Saturday night and Dallas hosts Philadelphia on Sunday.
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Trevor Story and Ceddanne Rafaela had consecutive RBI singles in a six-run fourth inning filled with five Houston mistakes, Lucas Giolito pitched a season-high eight stellar innings, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Astros 6-1 on Sunday to complete a series sweep.
Connor Wong added a sacrifice fly and Wilyer Abreu was credited with a sacrifice on a safety squeeze for an RBI during the inning, sending Boston to its third straight win over the AL West leaders and fourth in a row overall.
Giolito (8-2) gave up the run on three hits with four strikeouts and a walk, eclipsing his previous season-high innings of 7 2/3 on July 4.
Carlos Correa, acquired from Minnesota at the trade deadline, hit a homer for Houston, which has lost eight of 10.
The game’s first pitch was 11:38 a.m. EDT, the third time this season the Red Sox began a game in the morning. The others: their annual Patriots’ Day game when they beat the White Sox and the Independence Day victory at the Nationals.
Framber Valdez (11-5) gave up six runs, four earned, over six innings, ending his personal 10-game winning streak. He entered 10-0 with a 1.84 ERA in his previous 14 starts.
Key moment
During the fourth, Houston missed a cutoff on Story’s run-scoring single, Valdez had a wild pitch, balked home a run and had Abreu’s bunt go under his glove for an error. Yainer Diaz had a passed ball.
Key stat
Valdez hadn’t allowed three runs in an inning since May 19.
Up next
Astros: RHP Jason Alexander (1-1, 7.36 ERA) is slated to start the opener of a three-game series at the Marlins on Monday.
Red Sox: RHP Brayan Bello (7-5, 3.19) is set to start the first of three against the Royals on Monday.