The [Houston Rockets](https://www.thedreamshake.com) got back on the winning track on Sunday night, downing the Los Angeles Clippers 117-106 behind 31 points from Jalen Green. Green wasn’t terribly efficient, going 9-for-20 from the field and 5-for-13 from deep, but the Rockets led early and were able to hold the lead late despite Green’s up-and-down shooting.
The Rockets were playing without starting point guard Fred VanVleet, who was out with a knee contusion, but Amen Thompson filled in admirably, going for 22 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and a 1 block in 39 minutes played, while also going 9-for-14 from the floor and 1-for-3 from deep. He also had a poster dunk.
Dillon Brooks also came correct, finishing with 19 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocks, and he also shot 4-for-8 from beyond the arc. Jabari Smith Jr. contributed a 13-points, 12-rebound double-double, while Alperen Sengun had a quiet night by his standards, going for 11 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists.
With VanVleet out, we got some legitimate Aaron Holiday court time, as he played 19 minutes, putting up 11 points and 3 assists on 3-for-6 shooting from deep. With Reed Sheppard still struggling to get acclimated (0-for-3 shooting for 0 points), we may see a few more minutes for Holiday moving forward.
The Clippers were playing without James Harden, but they were led by Bones Hyland off the bench, who went for 22 points. They also got 21 and 12 from Ivica Zubac, who Sengun seemed to struggle with.
The Rockets held L.A. to 44 percent shooting and outrebounded the Clips 50-33, getting back to their formula of tight defense and solid team rebounding, and they now move to 16-8 on the season. They currently sit in third place in a tightly packed Western Conference.
They’ll be back in action on Wednesday night in mid-season tournament. They’ll be rematching the [Golden State Warriors](https://www.goldenstateofmind.com) at the Toyota Center, with the game airing on national TV on TNT.
PS - Sorry for the missed game thread last night, y’all. Our coverage person ended up unavailable and there was a miscommunication.