The Rockets broke the NBA record for three-pointers made in a season, but fell to the Spurs 110-98 in San Antonio.
The Rockets grabbed a quick 5-4 lead, giving the red-hot Spurs their first deficit in the last three games.
Houston’s sixth point came on Harden’s third made free throw, which broke his own franchise record for most free throws made in a season with 675.
The Rockets built a nine-point first quarter lead thanks to stellar play from Dwight Howard, who scored six and grabbed seven boards in seven first quarter minutes. Howard finished with a double-double – 16 points and 11 rebounds – in 21 minutes of play.
The Spurs cut the Rockets’ lead to just one at the end of the first after an 8-0 run. Both Harden and Tony Parker had 13 in the quarter. Harden never really got going after that and finished with 22 points on 6-15 FG. Meanwhile, Parker finished with 27 on 13-18 shooting.
The Rockets got back up by eight in the second, but the Spurs went on another 8-0 run to tie it up and ultimately take a four-point halftime lead after closing on a 16-4 run while Houston hit just two shots over the last five minutes.
The Spurs started the third hot and never let up as they build as large as a 15-point lead in the quarter thanks to five offensive rebounds.
The lead just ballooned to 19 as San Antonio hit nearly every shot they attempted. Kevin McHale emptied the bench with 6:16 remaining, inserting Clint Capela, Nick Johnson and Kostas Papanikolaou – who saw his first action since February 11th.
One positive from the evening was a Trevor Ariza three-pointer early in the fourth that gave the Rockets their 892nd of the season, breaking the NBA record for three-pointers in a season set by the 2012-13 New York Knicks.
The Rockets will face the Spurs again on Friday, but this time from Toyota Center.