Houston overcame a great game by Duckworth, beating Golden State 111-107. "It's a team sport," said losing coach Perez Suarez. "If we had another couple players like Duckworth out there, we'd have won this game easily. But we didn't, so we didn't." Perez Suarez has been under fire lately, and the lackluster performance by his players (save Duckworth) certainly doesn't improve his job security any.

The normally-quiet Duckworth was less than satisfied after the game. "I feel betrayed - like I did my best and my teammates didn't. I don't know if it was coach's fault for not getting the team up, or if the other players just all had an off day at the same time. But this was a close game, we had our chances, and we didn't execute when we needed."

Houston was led by Howard (32 points, 2 steals, 2 blocks), Roberson (9 points, 5 boards, 6 assists, 4 steals), Rogers (9 points, 11 boards, 4 assists, a steal). Golden State was led by Duckworth (5 points, 12 assists, 7 steals), Chiles (23 points, 2 assists), Simmons (10 points, 12 boards, 1 assists, a block).

Houston stand at 17-8 and 10-2 at home. They remain at #1 in the Southwest and improve to #2 overall in the Western Conference. Golden State stand at 8-15 with the defeat. They remain at #4 in the Pacific and hold at #13 overall in the Western Conference.

box score Houston roster Golden State* roster