WASHINGTON, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Rockets beat the Grizzlies 117-111 in overtime and seized the Southwest Division lead on Friday night.
James Harden just missed a triple-double with 32 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds. And Josh contributed 21 points in his first appearance as a Rockets man. Dwight Howard grabbed 11 rebounds for the Rockets and Trevor Ariza made a double-double as 15 points, 10 rebounds.
The Rockets outlasted the Grizzlies in the standings by defeating the opponent. Houston improved to 21-7 while Memphis fell to 21-8.
Spanish center Marc Gasol led Memphis with 29 points. But he could not stop his team from a four-game skid.