James Harden is literally a walking bucket right now.
The Rockets star continued his unbelievable scoring run, extending his 30-point scoring streak to 27 straight games after pouring in 44 points in Houston's 118-110 win over the Phoenix Suns.
Harden added eight rebounds, six assists and three steals on the night, shooting an efficient 15-of-26 from the field in 38 minutes of action.
James Harden extends his 30+ point scoring streak to 27 consecutive games, after a big night in Phoenix #Rockets
— NBA Australia (@NBA_AU) February 5, 2019
4️⃣4️⃣ points
8️⃣ rebounds
6️⃣ assists
3️⃣ steals pic.twitter.com/O5rTbnhPiq
After a close first half, Houston looked set to run away with the game, opening up a 20-point lead in the third quarter, eventually taking a 94-80 lead into the fourth quarter, before the Suns roared back into the game, going on an 8-2 run to to cut the lead to 96-88.
josh doin' josh things. 🚀 pic.twitter.com/9I50LEopR4
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) February 5, 2019
Houston struggled to counter, turning the ball over four times in five possessions as the Suns threatened to cut the lead even further, but with the game in the balance, Harden was as dependable as ever, scoring 14 of his 44 in the final frame to seal their ninth-straight win over the Suns and their 10th straight in Phoenix.
Today marked Harden's 20th 40-point game of the season, joining Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan and Rick Barry as the only players with 20 games scoring 40 or more in the first 50 games of a season.
Chris Paul added 18 points on the night, with eight in the fourt quarter, while Kenneth Faried chipped in 17 points and 14 rebounds.
For the Suns, Josh Jackson led the way with 25 points, while Kelly Oubre Jr. chipped in 23 off the bench. Devin Booker added 19 points and Deandre Ayton added 15 points and 11 boards.