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Recap: Rockets at Grizzlies - 12/26/2014

Josh Smith made a splash in his Rockets debut and James Harden continued his MVP-caliber season as Houston beat Memphis 117-111 in overtime.

The Rockets struggled in the first half, shooting only 39% from the field and getting outscored in the paint 34-22. They were able to grab eight offensive rebounds to give themselves second chances, but only turned those into 5 second-chance points.

After Dwight Howard picked up two quick fouls, Josh Smith made his Rockets debut early in the first quarter. Smith provided a quick spark off the bench as James Harden found him for a monster two-hand slam. Smith scored nine points and grabbed three boards in 14 first half minutes.

The Rockets picked up the pace as the second quarter wound down as they closed with a late 10-0 run to cut the Grizzlies’ 14-point lead in half.

The Rockets then opened the third on a 10-4 run to cut the Memphis lead to just 1. Memphis countered with a 9-2 run of their own, but Houston countered with James Harden. The Beard scored seven in the third and the Rockets trailed by just 2 heading to the fourth.

Josh Smith came through in the fourth as he drew a defender on the drive and dished out to Corey Brewer for a corner 3 that gave the Rockets the lead. Smith finished with 21 points and 8 rebounds in his Rockets debut.

The Rockets outscored the Grizzlies 10-3 to open the fourth with Harden on the bench. The Beard checked in with a 5-point lead and immediately hit a 3-pointer to give the Rockets their largest lead of the game at the time.

Jason Terry added consecutive three-pointers to give the Rockets a double-digit lead, but Memphis mounted their comeback as the second ticked away. Vince Carter hit back-to-back threes to give Memphis a two-point lead.

Then, the Beard did what the Beard does. James Harden yet again came through with the game on the line and took the ball to the rack for the game-tying layup. Memphis couldn’t hit on the next possession and the Memphis fans got five minutes of free basketball.

As the teams exchanged buckets in OT, Josh Smith came through with two huge consecutive offensive boards that led to two free throws and a four-point lead. Memphis battled back and had a chance to tie with a point blank layup, but James Harden blocked the shot at the rim and the Rockets left Memphis with a win and moved up in the West.

Harden finished with 32 points, 10 assists and 8 rebounds.

The Rockets head to San Antonio for a showdown with the champs on Sunday.