Superstar guard Luka Doncic led the way with 26 points, 14 rebounds, and 7 assists as the Dallas Mavericks held off the visiting Houston Rockets in Tuesday’s game at American Airlines Center, 116-106 (box score).
The Rockets were competitive on the road, but between Doncic and 16 points off the bench by Reggie Bullock — who hit 4-of-9 on 3-pointers — Dallas (2-1) had just enough to hold off a pesky Houston squad.
The Rockets (1-3) were led by 22 points off the bench from Eric Gordon, who connected on 7-of-11 shots (63.6%) overall and 3-of-5 from 3-point range. Big men Christian Wood (16 points, 17 rebounds) and Daniel Theis (15 points, 10 rebounds) each had double-doubles, but rookie guard Jalen Green struggled with 10 points on 4-of-16 shooting (25%) and backcourt mate Kevin Porter Jr. had a team-high 6 turnovers.
Veteran forward Danuel House Jr. started the game well with 8 points and 4 rebounds in nine minutes, but he left the game early with a right foot strain and did not return. X-rays were negative.
Houston returns to action on Thursday night at home versus Utah, with tipoff set for 7:00 p.m. from Toyota Center. The Jazz (2-0) entered Tuesday without a loss on the 2021-22 NBA season to date.
