Nets slow down Harden, Rockets

Taurean Prince had 27 points and 12 rebounds, and the Brooklyn Nets slowed down James Harden and the Houston Rockets in a 123-116 victory at home Friday night.

Two nights after scoring a franchise-record 159 points in a victory at Washington, the Rockets couldn’t get nearly enough shots to drop after opening an early 15-point lead. They went 12 for 48 from 3-point range, with Harden a dismal 2 for 16.

Harden finished with 36 points and eight assists, but he was 10 for 31 from the field. Russell Westbrook added 27 points, eight assists and seven rebounds.

Neither Harden nor Kyrie Irving was at his best in a matchup of the NBA’s two leading scorers.

Harden came in leading the league with 36.8 points per game, and scored 59 in the Washington outburst. Irving came in at 35.3 per game and had scored at least 26 in all four games, and finished with 22 points on 7-for-18 shooting with 10 assists.

Houston had a threegame winning streak snapped. ANTETOKOUNMPO, BUCKS ROLL PAST MAGIC >> Giannis Antetokounmpo had 29 points and 14 rebounds, and the visiting Milwaukee Bucks pounded the Orlando Magic 123-91. The Bucks grabbed control by making eight 3-pointers during a key stretch in the first half. They went 17 for 47 from beyond the arc on the night.

Evan Fournier led Orlando with 19 points. Nikola Vucevic had 14 points and seven rebounds.

After making eight of its first nine shots on the way to a 20-7 lead, Orlando was outscored 40-9 over the next 11 minutes. TATUM’S LATE HOOP LIFTS

CELTICS OVER KNICKS >> Jayson Tatum hit a turnaround jumper with 1.3 seconds remaining, and the Boston Celtics beat the New York Knicks 104-102 for their fourth straight victory.

Tatum finished with 24 points, and Kemba Walker scored 23 of his 33 points in the second half. BROGDON SCORES 25 AS

PACERS BEAT CAVALIERS >> Malcolm Brogdon had 25 points, eight rebounds and six assists to help the Indiana Pacers win at home for the first time this season, 102-95 over the Cleveland Cavaliers. Matthew Dellavedova, who played an average of 18 minutes in the first four games for Cleveland, was listed as out for personal reasons.

CAVS’ ALTMAN SIGNS MULTIYEAR EXTENSION >> Cavaliers general manager Koby Altman has signed a multiyear contract extension. The 37-year-old Altman signed a three-year contract in 2017, not long after he took over when the club parted with previous GM David Griffin. Altman is the first GM to receive an extension under owner Dan Gilbert.