HOUSTON -- — Kevin Durant had 18 points and moved into sixth place on the NBA's career points list, and Jabari Smith Jr. scored a season-high 32 points as the Houston Rockets beat the New Orleans Pelicans 119-110 Sunday night.

Alperen Sengun had 21 points and eight rebounds and Amen Thompson finished with 20 points as Houston won for the third time in four games.

Trey Murphy III scored 21 points on 7-for-15 shooting and Zion Williamson had 20 points and six rebounds. Derik Queen finished with 15 points for the Pelicans, who lost for the fourth time in five games and 13th time in 15 games.

With 15.2 seconds left in the game, Durant stepped to the free throw line needing one point to pass Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki (31,560 points) on the NBA's scoring list. The 15-time All-Star made two free throws and received a standing ovation from the home crowd. Durant now has 31,562 career points. Michael Jordan is fifth on the list at 32,292.

When the game was over, a special video message was played on the jumbotron with Dirk Nowitzki congratulating Durant.

Smith, who had 22 points in the first half, bounced back from a 3-for-12 shooting performance in a win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday. Against the Pelicans, he shot 11 for 21 and had a career-high seven 3-pointers.

Houston's Steven Adams had to be helped off the court in the fourth quarter with an apparent left ankle injury. Adams, who missed a few games earlier this season with a right ankle injury, had 10 rebounds and five points before leaving the game with just under 10 minutes left in the final quarter.

Up next

Pelicans: Host the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday.

Rockets: Host the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

Play By Play

Recent plays and game events

TIME	PLAY
12:00	Derik Queen vs. Steven Adams (Jabari Smith Jr. gains possession)	0	0
11:41	Alperen Sengun misses 5-foot two point shot	0	0
11:41	Zion Williamson defensive rebound	0	0
11:35	Saddiq Bey misses 25-foot running jump shot	0	0
11:33	Jeremiah Fears offensive rebound	0	0
11:22	Derik Queen bad pass turnover (Alperen Sengun steals)	0	0
11:12	Amen Thompson makes running layup	2	0
10:59	Derik Queen makes 17-foot pullup jump shot (Saddiq Bey assists)	2	2
10:40	Jabari Smith Jr. makes 24-foot three point jumper (Alperen Sengun assists)	5	2
10:26	Derik Queen misses 9-foot jumper	5	2
10:25	Alperen Sengun defensive rebound	5	2
10:17	Jeremiah Fears personal foul	5	2
10:11	Jeremiah Fears blocks Jabari Smith Jr. 's 9-foot driving floating jump shot	5	2
10:10	Steven Adams offensive rebound	5	2
10:08	Steven Adams makes two point shot	7	2
10:01	Saddiq Bey misses 26-foot three point pullup jump shot	7	2
10:01	Amen Thompson defensive rebound	7	2
9:53	Trey Murphy III personal foul	7	2
9:37	Alperen Sengun makes 12-foot two point shot (Steven Adams assists)	9	2
9:23	Trey Murphy III makes 9-foot fade away jump shot	9	4
9:04	Zion Williamson shooting foul	9	4
9:04	Kevin Durant makes free throw 1 of 2	10	4
9:04	Kevin Durant misses free throw 2 of 2	10	4
9:04	Jeremiah Fears defensive rebound	10	4
8:54	Jeremiah Fears misses 27-foot three point pullup jump shot	10	4
8:53	Steven Adams defensive rebound	10	4
8:46	Jabari Smith Jr. makes running layup (Kevin Durant assists)	12	4
8:34	Zion Williamson makes 12-foot pullup jump shot (Jeremiah Fears assists)	12	6
8:11	Kevin Durant makes 27-foot three pointer	15	6
7:55	Zion Williamson misses driving layup	15	6
7:54	Steven Adams defensive rebound	15	6
7:42	Kevin Durant makes 9-foot pullup jump shot (Alperen Sengun assists)	17	6
7:42	Pelicans Full timeout	17	6
7:42	Yves Missi enters the game for Jeremiah Fears	17	6
7:21	Derik Queen makes 6-foot two point shot (Yves Missi assists)	17	8
7:07	Alperen Sengun misses 3-foot two point shot	17	8
7:06	Derik Queen defensive rebound	17	8
6:58	Derik Queen misses 17-foot pullup jump shot	17	8
6:57	Amen Thompson defensive rebound	17	8
6:50	Amen Thompson out of bounds lost ball turnover	17	8
6:50	Josh Okogie enters the game for Alperen Sengun	17	8
6:40	Zion Williamson misses 12-foot pullup jump shot	17	8
6:39	Amen Thompson defensive rebound	17	8
6:28	Amen Thompson makes 2-foot dunk (Kevin Durant assists)	19	8
6:09	Yves Missi misses 5-foot two point shot	19	8
6:09	Jabari Smith Jr. defensive rebound	19	8
6:02	Jabari Smith Jr. misses running pullup jump shot	19	8
6:00	Zion Williamson defensive rebound	19	8
5:39	Zion Williamson misses 6-foot two point shot	19	8
5:38	Yves Missi offensive rebound	19	8
5:37	Yves Missi makes tip in dunk	19	10
5:18	Trey Murphy III shooting foul	19	10
5:18	Jabari Smith Jr. misses free throw 1 of 2	19	10
5:18	Rockets offensive team rebound	19	10
5:18	Reed Sheppard enters the game for Amen Thompson	19	10
5:18	Micah Peavy enters the game for Zion Williamson	19	10
5:18	Karlo Matkovic enters the game for Derik Queen	19	10
5:18	Jabari Smith Jr. makes free throw 2 of 2	20	10
5:04	Trey Murphy III makes 27-foot three pointer (Yves Missi assists)	20	13
4:40	Kevin Durant misses 27-foot three point pullup jump shot	20	13
4:38	Jabari Smith Jr. offensive rebound	20	13
4:37	Jabari Smith Jr. makes two point shot	22	13
4:22	Trey Murphy III misses 31-foot three point jumper	22	13
4:21	Steven Adams defensive rebound	22	13
4:13	Jabari Smith Jr. misses running layup	22	13
4:12	Jabari Smith Jr. offensive rebound	22	13
4:10	Jabari Smith Jr. makes tip shot	24	13
3:54	Trey Murphy III makes driving layup	24	15
3:38	Jabari Smith Jr. misses 22-foot three point jumper	24	15
3:37	Saddiq Bey defensive rebound	24	15
3:31	Saddiq Bey makes two point shot	24	17
3:18	Reed Sheppard makes 4-foot layup (Steven Adams assists)	26	17
3:18	Karlo Matkovic defensive goaltending violation	26	17
3:01	Steven Adams personal foul	26	17
3:01	Alperen Sengun enters the game for Jabari Smith Jr.	26	17
3:01	Dorian Finney-Smith enters the game for Steven Adams	26	17
3:01	Jordan Poole enters the game for Saddiq Bey	26	17
2:50	Trey Murphy III makes 7-foot driving floating jump shot (Yves Missi assists)	26	19
2:41	Dorian Finney-Smith offensive foul	26	19
2:41	Dorian Finney-Smith offensive foul turnover	26	19
2:41	Rockets Full timeout	26	19
2:41	Amen Thompson enters the game for Kevin Durant	26	19
2:41	Jae'Sean Tate enters the game for Josh Okogie	26	19
2:41	Jordan Hawkins enters the game for Trey Murphy III	26	19
2:26	Jordan Poole misses driving floating jump shot	26	19
2:25	Reed Sheppard defensive rebound	26	19
2:05	Alperen Sengun misses driving layup	26	19
2:04	Karlo Matkovic defensive rebound	26	19
1:59	Micah Peavy misses 23-foot running jump shot	26	19
1:58	Yves Missi offensive rebound	26	19
1:52	Jordan Hawkins misses 16-foot pullup jump shot	26	19
1:48	Micah Peavy offensive rebound	26	19
1:37	Jordan Hawkins makes 26-foot three pointer	26	22
1:37	Alperen Sengun shooting foul	26	22
1:37	Jordan Hawkins makes free throw 1 of 1	26	23
1:22	Karlo Matkovic shooting foul	26	23
1:22	Alperen Sengun misses free throw 1 of 2	26	23
1:22	Rockets offensive team rebound	26	23
1:22	Alperen Sengun misses free throw 2 of 2	26	23
1:22	Karlo Matkovic defensive rebound	26	23
1:09	Yves Missi makes driving layup (Jordan Poole assists)	26	25
1:01	Reed Sheppard makes 28-foot three pointer (Amen Thompson assists)	29	25
47.0	Karlo Matkovic makes 27-foot three pointer (Jordan Poole assists)	29	28
40.8	Reed Sheppard makes 27-foot three pointer	32	28
29.6	Jordan Hawkins makes 13-foot fade away jump shot	32	30
9.3	Alperen Sengun misses driving layup	32	30
8.2	Jordan Poole defensive rebound	32	30
1.7	Jordan Poole misses 25-foot three point step back jumpshot	32	30
0.3	Dorian Finney-Smith defensive rebound	32	30
0.0	End of the 1st Quarter	32	30

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Game Information

Time, Location & Referees

Venue

Toyota Center (Houston)

Houston, TX

Date & Time

12:00 AM, January 19, 2026

Coverage

Space City Home Network, GCSEN, Pelicans.com, NBA League Pass

Attendance

18,055

Referees

Derrick Collins, J.B. DeRosa, Nate Green

2025-26 Southwest Standings

TEAM	W	L	PCT	STRK
San Antonio	46	17	.730	W3
Houston	39	23	.629	W1
Memphis	23	38	.377	L2
Dallas	21	42	.333	L6
New Orleans	20	45	.308	L1

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Durant passes Nowitzki for 6th place on NBA career scoring list as Rockets beat Pelicans 119-110

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