Houston @ Oklahoma City preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 25, 2017 ) Houston 107, Oklahoma City 112

The Houston Rockets will try to snap a tie for the second-longest winning streak in franchise history when they carry their 15-game run into Oklahoma City for a matchup with the Thunder on Tuesday. A 123-120 win over Boston at home over the weekend tied the Rockets' streak with two others established in both 1992-93 and 1993-94, seven shy of the franchise mark of 22 established in 2007-08.

The win over the Celtics allowed Houston to maintain a slim margin over Golden State for the top spot in the Western Conference and offered another reminder to the Rockets that they will be getting everyone's best shot going down the stretch. "Yeah, every game from here on out is going to be a playoff game, playoff atmosphere, playoff intensity, physicality, everything. So, we're going to treat it like it is," guard James Harden told the media after collecting 26 points and 10 assists. The Thunder are in the middle of an eight-team battle for six spots in the West and they sunk to seventh in the conference after falling 108-100 at Portland on Saturday. They've won five of seven overall but all five wins came against some of the worst teams in the NBA and Oklahoma City has not defeated a winning opponent since Feb. 6.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT

ABOUT THE ROCKETS (49-13): Although it was another high-scoring affair Saturday night, Houston players were proud of the defensive work they did on key possessions down the stretch. "Defensively we are very equipped to get stops," Trevor Ariza - who had a 3-pointer, a steal and a basket in a short span under two minutes - told reporters. "So we have a lot in this locker room." Eric Gordon fueled the offense with 29 points in 27 minutes and he is averaging 25.5 while making 12-of-25 3-pointers over the last two games.

ABOUT THE THUNDER (37-28): Russell Westbrook scored 30 points in the loss to Portland but he needed 31 shots to get there and fellow All-Star Paul George missed all seven of his 3-point tries. "We closed well but obviously we didn't make the shots down the stretch," George told reporters. "But I think we got good enough looks. We got within three or four points. A play here or there to go our way and we've got a different ballgame. It just didn't happen that way." Carmelo Anthony was given the night off and returns to the court needing six points to pass Hall of Famer Jerry West (25,192) and move into 20th place on the NBA's all-time scoring list.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Westbrook, George and Anthony combined for 75 points on 28-of-51 shooting in a 112-107 win over Houston at home on Christmas.

2. Rockets PF Ryan Anderson (hip) missed the last three games but is expected to return this week.

3. Westbrook grabbed at least 11 rebounds in seven consecutive contests.

PREDICTION: Rockets 114, Thunder 111