Kevin Martin scored 34 points Monday night as the host Houston Rockets defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves for the 13th straight time with a 129-125 victory.
Luis Scola had 20 points and 12 rebounds and Shane Battier made five 3-pointers and scored 19 points for Houston, which shot 49 percent from the field, hit 14 shots from the arc and had six players in double figures.
The Rockets (21-25) haven't lost to the Timberwolves since Jan. 7, 2007.
Minnesota's Kevin Love had 24 points and 17 rebounds for his 30th straight double-double. He was 11-of-11 from the foul line and had a season-high seven assists.
Houston ended a two-game losing streak. Minnesota (10-34) has lost four straight and nine of 10.
The Rockets scored 39 points in the first quarter but were clinging to a 68-67 lead early in the third period before using a 25-7 run to take a 93-74 lead.
Minnesota went on a late 15-4 run to cut the deficit to 125-122 with 9.3 seconds left, but two free throws by Martin and two more by Kyle Lowry put away the game.
Aaron Brooks scored 15 points, Lowry added 14 and Chase Budinger 12 for the Rockets.
Rookie Wesley Johnson scored 19 points, Luke Ridnour added 18 and Michael Beasley 16 for the Wolves, who fell to 2-9 in January.
Houston | Minnesota | |
Kevin Martin 34 | Scoring | Kevin Love 24 |
Chuck Hayes 7 | Assists | Kevin Love 7 |
Luis Scola 12 | Rebounds | Kevin Love 17 |
Kevin Martin 13 | Free Throws Made | Kevin Love 11 |
Kevin Martin 3 | Steals | Wesley Johnson 3 |
Shane Battier 2 | Blocks | Wesley Johnson 2 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Houston | 129 | 49.4 | 14-30 | 29-36 | 26 | 40 | 3 | 7 | 14 |
Minnesota | 125 | 50.5 | 10-20 | 23-28 | 30 | 42 | 6 | 8 | 16 |