Kevin Durant poured in 31 points, and Jabari Smith Jr. added a season-high 25 as the Houston Rockets dominated the Toronto Raptors 139-121 on Wednesday night, extending Toronto’s losing streak to four games.
Alperen Şengün narrowly missed a triple-double with 18 points, nine assists, and eight rebounds, while Amen Thompson and Tari Eason each scored 18 and 14 points, respectively. Steven Adams chipped in 12 points and 12 rebounds as the Rockets controlled the paint and outrebounded Toronto 53-22. Seven Houston players finished with at least five boards in a commanding team effort.
Durant, who shot 11-of-19 from the field and 4-of-8 from deep, led an offense that was efficient and relentless, helping Houston pull away late in the second quarter and never look back.
For Toronto, Scottie Barnes scored 31 points, and Brandon Ingram matched his season high with 29, but it wasn’t enough to stop the skid. Immanuel Quickley added 15 points, while rookie Collin Murray-Boyles contributed 13 in his first career start, filling in for Jakob Poeltl (sore lower back).
Despite the loss, the Raptors had a strong shooting night from beyond the arc, hitting a season-best 21-of-40 from three-point range, including eight in the second quarter alone. But defensive lapses and rebounding woes proved costly.
The Rockets seized control with an 11-0 run to end the first half, then opened the third quarter on a 14-4 burst to extend their lead to 84-67. Houston led 106-91 after three quarters and maintained a double-digit cushion throughout the fourth.
Toronto’s losing streak has now reached four games, all by double digits — and all against Texas teams, following previous defeats to Dallas and San Antonio.
Up Next:
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Rockets: Travel to Boston to face the Celtics on Saturday.
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Raptors: Head to Cleveland to take on the Cavaliers on Friday night.
