Jabari Smith Jr.'s career-high seven triples and stellar defense ignited the Rockets, securing a crucial home victory against the resilient Pelicans.
The Houston Rockets walked into Toyota Center on Sunday night with something to settle. Back in December, the Rockets let a 25-point lead evaporate in New Orleans. The Pelicans once again came onto the court on Sunday as the lowest ranking team in the NBA, but to their credit, they didn’t hand this win over easy to Houston.
New Orleans held their own for most of the night- even slightly outscoring the No. 5 team in the West in the second half, but with Jabari on fire from three and a tight Houston defense, it wouldn’t be enough, and the Pelicans ultimately fell.
Houston held off New Orleans 119-110 to move to 14-3 at home, and the difference was simple: Jabari Smith Jr. changed the geometry of the floor.
The Rockets have been searching for answers from three lately, after spending most of the season as the best three-point shooting team in the league. On Sunday, Jabari buried seven triples- a career high- finishing 7-for-13 from deep and pouring in 32 points in what was easily his best performance of the season, and arguably the best of his young career.
When Jabari’s shot is falling like that, everything else settles. In fact, in games where Jabari contributes 15+, Houston rarely leaves without a win. Against the Pelicans, the Rockets didn’t need to force tempo or need Durant to save them again. They were able to play with space, patience, and control- three things that have defined their growth at home this season.
Houston jumped out early, shooting nearly 60-percent in the first quarter and opening with an 11-point lead. When New Orleans responded with a 12-2 run and turned the opening stretch into a paint-heavy battle, Reed Sheppard answered momentum swings with back-to-back threes. Amen Thompson brought pace and pressure in transition. Every starter scored in the opening frame.
The Pelicans sped the game up in the second quarter and briefly grabbed their first lead. Jabari responded by detonating with four more threes in the period. And by halftime, Houston had rebuilt a double-digit cushion and reasserted control.
The third quarter tested that control. Jabari cooled briefly from deep. Kevin Durant couldn’t find a rhythm, finishing just 5-for-18 on the night. New Orleans closed the frame on a run. The margin tightened, and Houston needed steadying.
Alperen Şengün recovered from a quiet first half to anchor the interior. The ever-athletic Amen Thompson kept attacking- crashing the glass, finishing through contact, even dunking his own miss in a sequence that summed up his night.
Jabari reopened the door in the fourth with two more threes, adding ten points in the final frame. Every time New Orleans hinted at a push, Jabari answered with spacing that bent the defense back into place. Even after Steven Adams exited with a sprained ankle, Houston stayed composed.
Durant, despite the rough shooting night, moved into sixth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list at the line- a quiet but remarkable milestone in a game defined by someone else’s breakout.
By the final buzzer, the Pelicans had competed. But Houston had controlled, and Jabari had delivered the kind of night that shifts expectations.
All the Rockets needed on Sunday night was one player to raise the ceiling, and Jabari Smith Jr. did exactly that. Congratulations to Kevin Durant on making history once again, and another kudos to Smith for an absolutely stellar performance in Houston.