Rockets 109, Bulls 94: Dwight Howard scored 23 points on 11-of-14 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds as host Houston cruised past Chicago.

Chandler Parsons added 19 points and nine rebounds and James Harden also scored 19 points as the Rockets improved to 11-3 at home. Patrick Beverley tallied 15 points and Omri Casspi added 11.

Jimmy Butler scored 20 points and Luol Deng added 18 for the Bulls, who have lost 12 of their last 15 games. Carlos Boozer had 17 points and Joakim Noah grabbed 10 rebounds.

The Bulls trailed 68-65 with 5:24 left in the third quarter before missing all six shots and turning the ball over five times the rest of the period. The Rockets capitalized with a 15-1 quarter-ending burst to take an 83-66 lead into the final stanza and increased the lead to 19 on Parsons’ basket 15 seconds into the quarter.

Houston led by 10 after one quarter and 57-46 at halftime. Chicago started the third quarter strong and pulled within three on Deng’s basket before the Rockets’ ferocious run.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Houston had a 66-40 edge in points in the paint. … The Bulls failed to reach 100 points for the seventh straight game. … Chicago PG Kirk Hinrich (back) missed his third straight game, while Houston G Jeremy Lin (back) sat out his second consecutive contest.