HOUSTON — James Harden had 43 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists in his fourth straight 40-point game, leading the Houston Rockets over the Memphis Grizzlies 113-101 on Monday night for their fifth consecutive victory.

Harden set an NBA record with his eighth straight game with at least 35 points and five assists, besting Oscar Robertson, who twice had seven-game streaks. Harden finished with his fourth triple-double this season and 39th overall.

Houston has won 10 of its last 11 to improve to 21-15.

Harden continued his incredible run that has powered Houston’s surge up the Western Conference standings after a slow start, making six 3-pointers and 21 of 27 free throws. He has made at least four 3-pointers in eight straight games has finished with 30 points or more in 10 games in a row.

The Grizzlies cut the lead to nine with about 90 seconds left. But P.J. Tucker made a free throw for Houston before Austin Rivers added a layup to make it 113-101 and seal the victory with about 35 seconds left.

Harden grabbed his 10th rebound seconds after that to complete his triple-double.

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Kyle Anderson had 20 points and Mike Conley added 19 for the Grizzlies, who lost for the seventh time in nine games.

Houston was up by 13 to start the fourth and back-to-back baskets by Clint Capela made it 93-77 with about 9 minutes left. Harden made four straight free throws for the Rockets later in the fourth to leave them up 98-83.

HORNETS 125, MAGIC 100: Kemba Walker scored 24 points in just 27 minutes, and Charlotte beat Orlando, its 13th straight victory over the Magic, in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Walker had 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting in the first half and did not play in the fourth quarter. Malik Monk added 21 points as the Hornets put six players in double figures in the easy victory over the Magic and Steve Clifford, who coached Charlotte for five seasons.

The Hornets improved to 18-18 with their second win in three games.

Aaron Gordon scored 14 points and Nikola Vucevic had 12, but he did not play after leaving the court with a knee injury late in the third quarter. Mo Bamba had 12 rebounds in 18 minutes for the Magic, who opened a six-game trip by having a two-game winning streak snapped.

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Orlando led 14-4 in the opening minutes, but the Hornets answered with a 20-4 run over the next 4 ½ minutes. Charlotte’s first-quarter lead reached 36-23 after a dunk by Monk.

Walker found Monk open in the corner for a 3-pointer as the first half clock expired, giving the Hornets a 63-53 lead.

Cody Zeller added 14 for the Hornets before leaving in the third quarter with a broken right hand. Marvin Williams, Willy Hernangomez and Devonte Graham added 10 apiece.

The Hornets got a boost off the bench from rookie guard Graham, who scored all his points in the third quarter, helping the Hornets extend their lead to 95-77 through three.

PACERS 116, HAWKS 108: Victor Oladipo scored 22 points while Domantas Sabonis and Myles Turner each added 20 to lead Indiana to a win at home.

Indiana has won five straight and 12 of 14 to became the third team in the league with 25 wins this season.

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John Collins finished with 22 points and 16 rebounds to lead Atlanta. Rookie Kevin Huerter scored 22 points and made six 3-pointers, both season highs, as the Hawks lost for the second time in seven games – both to the Pacers in the last week.

Oladipo played perhaps his best overall game since returning from a knee injury on Dec. 12. He was 9 of 19 from the field, had four rebounds and five steals.

Indiana led most of the game but needed a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Turner to break a 60-60 tie just before halftime.

The Pacers then opened the second half with back-to-back baskets to make it 67-60, started pulling away when Turner and Bojan Bogdanovic made consecutive 3s midway through the third to extend the lead to 87-76 and closed it out by scoring the final eight points of the quarter to take a 97-81 lead.

Atlanta couldn’t get closer than six the rest of the way and did not score in the final 1:49 as it lost its fifth straight in Indianapolis.

But for the second consecutive game in the series, the Hawks seriously tested the league’s top scoring defense.

They started the game by making four of their five 3s and jumping to a 20-13 lead. Indiana charged back with 11 straight points and finished the first quarter on a 20-5 run that gave Indiana a 33-25 lead.

When the Hawks’ 3-point shooters warmed up again, they roared back. They retook the lead, 53-51, at the end of an 11-4 before Indiana seized control.


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