HOUSTON -- Houston Rockets second-year forward Montrezl Harrell was getting an earful from Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan in the third quarter, absorbing some measure of trash talk with every basket or rebound or influenced shot.

In the fourth quarter, Harrell let his play serve as a forceful response.

James Harden recorded his seventh triple-double on the season while Harrell scored a career-high 29 points off the bench to fuel the Rockets' 140-116 win over the Clippers on Friday night at Toyota Center.

Harden totaled 30 points (on 10 of 15 shooting), 13 rebounds and 10 assists; Harrell helped finish off the feisty Clippers (22-13) with 13 fourth-quarter points to propel the Rockets (25-9) to victory. Houston led by 25 points midway through the second quarter but needed Harden and Harrell to key one final surge after the Clippers pulled to within 110-104 with 10:49 left to play.

"I play with a huge (chip) on my shoulder," Harrell said. "I play the 5-spot; I'm only 6-8 which is undersized but I just play with a lot of heart and a lot of passion.

"Jordan, I just tried to tune out what he said. I'm not going to get myself a tech arguing back and forth. That's money."

Reserve guard Raymond Felton had 26 points and five rebounds with eight assists in 31 minutes while Jordan added 20 points and 13 rebounds for the Clippers, who dropped their fifth consecutive game. Los Angeles guard Austin Rivers and coach Doc Rivers were ejected 25 seconds apart from one another in the second quarter, with the former sent to the locker room following his contact with official J.T. Orr.

"I didn't do anything wrong," Austin Rivers said. "I reacted to the play. I had no idea (Orr) was there. I was backing up and I said, 'Call the foul.' When I did it I was turning and he was right there and my elbow touched him. I've never in my career put my hands on a ref and I don't ever plan to.

"I didn't mean to touch him. I didn't do anything wrong. I'll stand by that. I didn't do anything wrong."

Clippers reserve center Marreese Speights scored on the play just prior to the Austin Rivers ejection and, according to Doc Rivers, was fouled and should have been granted a subsequent free throw. He was not, and during a later timeout, Rivers voiced his displeasure with the non-call and was tossed.

"They called an and-1 on that. You can see it on the replay," Doc Rivers said. "They forgot to give us the free throw. I called a timeout and said, 'Hey, you forgot to give us the free throw,' and they didn't know what we were talking about. I said, 'You guys don't know what you're doing,' and that was it."

Houston produced a season-high point total, converting 36 of 43 free throws while also nailing 14 3-pointers and shooting 55.6 percent from the floor. Trevor Ariza and Eric Gordon shot a combined 9 for 15 from behind the arc in totaling 37 points. Patrick Beverley added 15 points and seven assists.

Instead of coming undone, the shorthanded Clippers rallied following the Rivers ejections. Rockets forward Ryan Anderson sank the second technical free throw, boosting the lead to 60-35 with 6:13 remaining in the first half.

Keyed by a pair of 3-pointers by Speights, the Clippers fought back with an 18-4 run that cut the margin to 64-53. After Speights carried the Clippers back into contention, Felton and Jordan picked up the torch in the third and worked in tandem to whittle a 17-point deficit at the break to 102-96 at the 1:23 mark.

Felton and Jordan were unstoppable, combining for 32 points with Jordan adding seven rebounds and Felton four assists. The Clippers shot 17 of 27 in the third quarter, and despite Houston closing the period with 108 points, the lead stood at a modest 10. But as the injury-ravaged Clippers began to tire, the Rockets maintained their offensive efficiency and finally stretched the advantage out of reach.

"We handled our business," Harden said. "Made some shots and got some stops when we needed to and finished the game off."

NOTES: With G Chris Paul working his way back from a left hamstring injury, the team opted to rest him after Paul played 30 minutes on Wednesday night against the Pelicans. Paul posted 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists in New Orleans after missing three games. Austin Rivers started in his place. ... Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni has been determining his starter at center based on matchups and decided that veteran Nene would be the better choice against Clippers C DeAndre Jordan. Montrezl Harrell started on Tuesday night against the Mavericks. ... Clippers G J.J. Redick returned from a two-game injury hiatus. Redick missed time with a sore left hamstring. ... Houston played the front end of a home back-to-back, its first since Feb. 19-20, 2012. The Rockets will host the New York Knicks on Saturday.