NBA: Kevin Durant leads Rockets past hawks with balanced scoring attack

Kevin Durant led seven double-figure scorers with 22 points as the visiting Houston Rockets beat the Atlanta Hawks 121-114 on Saturday to improve to 3-0.

The last time Houston opened a season with three straight wins was in 2017-18, when the Rockets went on to post a franchise-record 65 victories and reach the Western Conference finals.

Houston extended its winning streak against Atlanta to five games. The teams will meet again Monday in Houston. The Rockets held the high-scoring Hawks, who averaged 130 points while winning their first two games, to a season-low point total.

Houston also got 19 points apiece from Tari Eason and Reed Sheppard, who started in place of Fred VanVleet (right knee load management). Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson each scored 17 points, with Sengun grabbing 10 rebounds and Thompson collecting 11.

Atlanta was led by Jalen Johnson, who fell just shy of a triple-double with 26 points, 16 assists and nine rebounds. Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Dyson Daniels scored 18 points apiece, and CJ McCollum added 17.

The Rockets capitalized on Atlanta's struggles from beyond the arc. The Hawks made just 5 of 22 3-point attempts in the first half, including 1 of 10 in the second quarter, and finished 13 of 49 (26.5%) from deep. Houston shot 40% (14 of 35) from 3-point range.

The Rockets led by as many as 20 points at 108-88 in the fourth quarter, but Atlanta mounted a late rally with a 9-0 run and cut the deficit to five with 37 seconds remaining. Durant sealed the win with two free throws with 19 seconds left.

Atlanta scored the game's first seven points, but Houston responded with a 10-1 run to take a 10-8 lead. The Rockets led 30-26 after the first quarter, fueled by 10 points from Atlanta-area native Jabari Smith Jr. Houston continued to build its advantage, leading by as many as 11 points before taking a 59-48 lead into halftime.

The game's start time was pushed back 30 minutes to accommodate the Atlanta Dream's WNBA Finals game Saturday afternoon. The later tipoff did not appear to affect Houston, which did not arrive in Atlanta until after 5 a.m. local time.

-Field Level Media/Reuters