Houston @ Denver preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 9, 2018 ) Denver 104, Houston 130

The Houston Rockets are bridging the All-Star break with an 11-game winning streak but are about to begin the toughest part of the remaining schedule with 10 of the next 13 on the road. That stretch begins with a high-altitude back-to-back, starting with a visit to the surging Denver Nuggets on Sunday.

The Rockets, who head to Utah on Monday and will play 12 of the next 13 games against teams with current winning records, are trying to hold off the defending champion Golden State Warriors for the top spot in the Western Conference. Houston didn't show any rust out of the break on Friday, when it enjoyed one of its few home games over the next month by breezing past the Minnesota Timberwolves 120-102. The Nuggets are tied for the second-longest winning streak in the West at four in a row and are trying to emerge out of a pack of teams tightly grouped from third through tenth in the standings. "We just have to keep worrying about ourselves, keep on winning games," Denver coach Michael Malone told reporters after a 122-119 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Friday. "We have 23 games left and it doesn't get any easier. ... We still have a lot of heavy-lifting to do, but if we continue to win and continue to play really exciting, good basketball, people will take notice."

TV: 8 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet Southwest (Houston), Altitude (Denver)

ABOUT THE ROCKETS (45-13): Houston has an MVP candidate in James Harden starting alongside a future Hall of Famer in Chris Paul in the backcourt, but center Clint Capela is starting to carve out some recognition for himself as well. The 23-year-old, who leads the NBA in field-goal percentage at .659, scored 25 points on 10-of-11 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds on Friday for his fifth straight double-double. "He's just a smart player in the sense that he gets in the right spots at the right time," Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni told reporters. "He's got great hands. He's obviously long as heck and he can finish. He just understands James and Chris, where he needs to get to in an open spot. He has some kind of innate ability to be able to do it."

ABOUT THE NUGGETS (33-26): Capela will be in for a big challenge on the defensive end on Sunday from red-hot Denver center Nikola Jokic. The 23-year-old turned in his third consecutive triple-double with 28 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in Friday's win and is 8-of-13 from 3-point range in that span. "I try to play the right way every time," Jokic said. "I think that's how you're supposed to play. The ball's going to find you. If you see the open guy next to you, just pass the ball, two extra passes. The small things."

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Rockets SG Eric Gordon (illness) sat out Friday and is doubtful for Sunday.

2. Nuggets C Mason Plumlee (calf) returned from an eight-game absence on Friday and scored 12 points in 21 minutes off the bench.

3. Capela collected 23 points and 25 rebounds to get the better of Jokic as Houston pounded Denver 130-104 at home on Feb. 9.

PREDICTION: Rockets 123, Nuggets 120