James Harden collected 17 points and nine assists, Jeremy Lin added 16 points and seven assists off the bench and Terrence Jones contributed 14 points and 12 boards for the Rockets. Howard foiled the Nuggets' strategy of fouling him down the stretch, making 13-of-19 free throws in the fourth and 17-of-24 overall.

Ty Lawson poured in 28 points and dished out a career-high 17 assists to lead the Nuggets, who had their three-game winning streak snapped. J.J. Hickson and Wilson Chandler added 14 apiece for Denver.

Houston hit eight of its first 10 shots, racing out to a 19-8 lead. Parsons pushed it to 28-12 with a four-point play with 4:33 left in the first quarter, and the Rockets took a 63-46 advantage into halftime.

The Nuggets opened the second half with a 13-3 spurt to pull within seven but couldn't maintain the momentum. Jones scored six points during a 14-2 run to spread it back out, and Denver resorted to hacking Howard but couldn't close the gap.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Rockets had a 47-43 edge on the boards in a matchup of the league's top two rebounding teams. … Houston PF Donatas Motiejunas, who had played in only two games and scored one point in nine minutes all season, scored 12 off the bench. … Houston was 31-of-44 from the foul line, while Denver was 13-of-18.