SALT LAKE CITY (NBA.com exclusive) --  They wore their red road uniforms and brought recognizable players such as Shane Battier, Luis Scola and Aaron Brooks back to EnergySolutions Arena.

But the Houston Rockets might have made Utah wonder if it was a case of mistaken identity when they ran their way to a 113-96 victory over the Jazz on Monday night.

The Houston team that used to grind out games and base its offense around throwing it inside to Yao Ming was nowhere to be found. In its place was a team that run-and-gunned its way to a fairly easy victory over the Jazz.

The Rockets, who will be without Yao for the entire season, don't have the size to play the way they did when their 7-footer was healthy. So they have adapted, and the results have been positive. Houston has won three straight games.

"We have to play fast," said Houston forward Shane Battier. "That's the best way to combat physical play. If we would have tried to bang with those guys, they're too big. They're bigger than us."

Size was seemingly the only advantage Utah had on Houston on Monday. The Rockets dictated the game's tempo, pushing the ball at every opportunity until the game's outcome was determined in the fourth quarter. Houston caught Utah sleeping a couple of times after made baskets, and got some easy points off of layups.

"We really pushed the ball the whole game and kept coming at them," said Rockets coach Rick Adelman. "We got some stops in the second half. It was a terrific win."

Houston pulled away in the fourth quarter with a lineup consisting of Battier, Scola, Kyle Lowry and rookies Chase Budinger and David Andersen. Budinger banked in a 15-footer to give the Rockets the lead for good at 82-80 and then splashed in a 3-pointer with an assist from Lowry. A 22-4 run in less than six minutes gave the Rockets a comfortable 102-84 lead.

"That group that came in the fourth quarter just really made a huge difference with Kyle and Chase and Shane," Adelman said. "It was terrific. It was fun to watch."

It wasn't quite as enjoyable for the home fans, who started emptying the building with about five minutes remaining. The Rockets came into the game averaging 102 points and they hit that total when Lowry made a 3-pointer with five minutes left in the game.

"I think they did a terrific job," said Jazz coach Jerry Sloan. "They put all kinds of pressure on us the way they pushed the ball up the floor and did a great job of getting on the boards."

The Jazz are having the same issues as they did last season with injuries, poor defense and an uncertain future for their roster. The Jazz gave up 84 points in the first three quarters of their 111-98 win over the Clippers on Friday. They did manage to hold L.A. to 27 percent shooting in the fourth quarter to salvage that victory.

The Rockets weren't as accommodating.

"It's like we picked up right where we left off [last season]," said Jazz guard Deron Williams. "We haven't played a good game of basketball yet. It doesn't look too good right now from the inside, and I'm sure it doesn't look good from the outside. Anytime in the third game of the season you're getting booed in your home arena it doesn't make you feel good."

Houston's second-half defense didn't make Utah feel all that great either, holding the Jazz to 37 percent shooting. The first half was fast-paced and somewhat sloppy defensively for both teams. After halftime, the Rockets took away Utah's easy opportunities.

"There's always a trade-off when you're trying to play a certain way," Adelman said. "You're running and you're pushing it but you're giving up easy ones, too. You've got to concentrate on the defensive end so you don't give that up."

Brooks led an incredibly balanced Houston effort with 19 points. Eight players scored in double figures for the Rockets, who got a big fourth quarter boost from Budinger. The rookie had a career-high 17 points and five assists.

Houston also made 10 3-pointers with Battier draining three of them.

Without Yao and without Tracy McGrady, who's out indefinitely while recovering from microfracture surgery on his left knee, the Rockets are still finding their way. After three straight wins, they seem to be figuring out how to be successful without their two stars, and the way to do it is to run and gun.

"We're going to have to," Battier said. "We can't afford to slow it down and play a half-court game. We just not big enough. We're going to make a lot of threes and look good some nights and some nights we're going to miss a lot of threes and look terrible. We think in the long run we have enough talent to win this way."