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The Houston Rockets hosted the Dallas Mavericks Monday night looking to notch their first win of the season series after dropping the previous two. The Rockets leaned on the 3-point shot as they have all season to run away with lead early and held on throughout to secure the blowout victory. Houston remains first in the Southwest Division and fifth in the Western Conference.
Supporting cast
Monday night proved that with their continuously improving health and depth the Rockets are growing tougher and tougher to beat as the season wears on. While favoring a tweaked shoulder from Saturday's game, James Harden remained effective by distributing around the arc. His teammates made the most of their opportunities, nailing 16 3-pointers en route to the 16-point victory. Houston finished with big nights from Gerald Green (19 points), Eric Gordon (18 points), Chris Paul (17 points), and Kenneth Faried (17 points).
Streak continued
While the game itself lacked drama, the subplot of Harden's consecutive 30+ point game streak was anything but. It was apparent throughout the night that The Beard was far less interested in the streak as he was the win and it showed through his 7 assists. It wasn't until late in the game when the game was all but decided that Harden chose to keep the streak alive. With less than a minute left, he buried a three to continue the streak, pulling him within one game of second place for the longest such streak in NBA history.
CP3 passes the Glove
Chris Paul turned in a promising 17 point, 11 assist night along with a 5-10 performance from beyond the arc. In doing so, he passed Gary Payton for eighth all time on the NBA assist leaderboard. Paul has looked much more like last season's version of himself in the past two games, which will prove pivotal to any run the Rockets may go on after the all-star break.
Rockets Player of the Game
James Harden: 31 points, 7 assists, 8 rebounds, 5 steals
Mavericks Player of the Game
Luka Doncic: 21 points, 8 assists, 10 rebounds
Last Shot
As the dust settles and the buyout market picture sharpens into focus, one name to keep an eye on is Markieff Morris. Having been bought out by the Pelicans after being traded to from the Wizards, the 6' 10" power forward is expected to choose a new team sometime this week. The Rockets, Lakers, and Raptors have each expressed interest. Morris is a versatile big that brings both range and defense that could help spell starting forward PJ Tucker, as well as space the floor for easier driving attempts for Harden, Paul, and Gordon.
Up next:
The Rockets travel to Minnesota to take on the Timberwolves on Wednesday at 7 p.m. central.
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Jose Altuve has passed Hall of Famer Jeff Bagwell for second place on the career hits list for the Houston Astros.
With a bunt single in the first inning and a two-run single in the sixth on Wednesday night at Colorado, Altuve raised his career total to 2,315 hits, one more than Bagwell. Hall of Famer Craig Biggio is the franchise leader with 3,060 career hits.
You can relive the big moment in the video below!
He does it!
Jose Altuve is now 2nd in the Astros all time hit list. pic.twitter.com/ZNJVGcTjWp
— Houston Astros (@astros) July 3, 2025
Altuve, a nine-time All-Star who moved this season from second base to left field, is in his 15th major league season, all with Houston. Both Biggio and Bagwell also spent their entire careers with the Astros.
Among active players, Altuve is second in career hits behind Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman, who had 2,351 entering Wednesday.
Altuve caught up with MLB.com's Brian McTaggart after the game.
Jose Altuve got a congratulatory text message postgame from Jeff Bagwell after passing him on the Astros’ all-time hits list. pic.twitter.com/KtKk28SZEt
— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) July 3, 2025
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