Houston @ Utah preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 17, 2018 ) Utah 97, Houston 102

James Harden seeks his 26th consecutive 30-point effort when the Houston Rockets visit the Utah Jazz on Saturday. Harden scored 30 to tie Wilt Chamberlain for the third-longest such streak Friday but the Rockets were outplayed in a 136-122 road loss against the Denver Nuggets.

Harden had his streak of 11 straight 35-point outings halted and he also had a 24-game streak of being the game's leading scorer snapped as Denver's Malik Beasley tallied a game-high 35 points. Houston has allowed an average of 128.5 points during a two-game slide as it enters the second contest of a four-game road excursion. Utah has won 10 of its past 12 games and had seven players score in double digits during Friday's 128-112 home win over the Atlanta Hawks. "It's just special. We have good chemistry here and we go to work together," point guard Ricky Rubio told reporters after contributing 22 points and 11 assists. "When somebody is down, we pick them up. This is the best team I've ever been on chemistry-wise."

TV: 9 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet Southwest (Houston), AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain (Utah)

ABOUT THE ROCKETS (29-22): Coach Mike D'Antoni indicated that point guard Chris Paul will likely sit out against the Jazz as he recently returned from missing 17 games because of a hamstring injury. Paul played well in the loss to Denver with 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting and is averaging 14 points and seven assists in three games since returning to action. Power forward Kenneth Faried scored 23 points against the Nuggets - his former team - and is averaging 18.8 points and 10.3 rebounds over the past four games.

ABOUT THE JAZZ (30-23): Standout center Rudy Gobert was disappointed to be passed over for an All-Star Game reserve spot and he responded with 25 points and 13 rebounds against Atlanta for his 42nd double-double of the season. Utah has scored 125 or more points in three of the past eight contests but may be reluctant to have a high-octane contest against the potent Rockets. "We know exactly how they are going to come at us," Utah forward Jae Crowder told reporters after Friday's win. "It's about hitting on the key points of the game for us and having the focus on what we need to take away from those guys."

BUZZER BEATERS

1. The Jazz have limited the Rockets to an average of 94 points while winning two of this season's three meetings.

2. Harden is averaging 30.3 points against Utah this season with a high of 47 and a low of 15.

3. Utah SG Donovan Mitchell scored 15 points on Friday after topping 20 in each of the previous 13 games.

PREDICTION: Jazz 117, Rockets 113