NEW YORK -- James Harden and the Houston Rockets spent plenty of energy trying to knock off the champs. They had more than enough left a night later.Harden had 30 points and 15 assists, and Houston routed the New York Knicks 118-99 on Wednesday night.Were a special group and were fairly new, Harden said, so the more were going to continue to build and do things and play the right way no matter who were playing, the better off well be.The NBAs leader coming into the day with 11.8 assists per game, Harden toyed with the Knicks defense, setting up teammates for lobs or open 3-pointers as the Rockets easily bounced back from a 128-120 loss in Cleveland on Tuesday.Eric Gordon added 21 points for Houston, which has won seven straight at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks havent defeated the Rockets at home since Jan. 26, 2009, so long ago that their coach was current Houston coach Mike DAntoni.Harden also grabbed six rebounds, a night after he had 41 points and 15 assists. And the Rockets got a boost from their bench, particularly Montrezl Harrell, who had 17 points and 10 rebounds.Those guys helped us keep going and then James is James, DAntoni said. Hes really good and I think he can play every night.Carmelo Anthony scored 21 points for the Knicks, who besides their poor defense also heard loud boos for their rebounding and turnovers in a dismal performance.If we dont start playing defense, were going to keep getting smacked like this, guard Derrick Rose said. It comes with effort. It comes with everybody being on the same page.The Knicks were also playing for the second straight night, but only they appeared to have tired legs. Houston quickly extended a 33-25 lead after one quarter into double digits and was ahead 68-51 at halftime.Gordon opened the third quarter with a 3-pointer to make it a 20-point game and Harden closed it with another 3 that sent the Rockets to the fourth quarter with a 100-78 lead.TIP-INSRockets: C Nene sat out to rest on the second night of the Rockets back-to-back. ... DAntoni went 121-167 with the Knicks from 2008 until resigning in March 2012.Knicks: New York has lost 21 of the last 23 meetings with Houston. ... Rose and Courtney Lee scored 16 points each.DEKKER HITS THE DECKSam Dekker was headed for what would have been a breakaway basket when he stumbled and fell near the free throw line, the ball bouncing off the court, then off his face and out of bounds. Dekker went to the court again moments later after Kyle OQuinn blocked his shot.HORNACEK IN HOUSTON?Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek, after being fired in Phoenix, interviewed for the Houston job last spring before the Rockets hired DAntoni. With Harden in place and believing Ryan Anderson would sign there, Hornacek was interested. Obviously the pieces theyve added have made them dynamic on the offensive end, Hornacek said. Theyre going to be hard to stop and so when you look around at jobs and they call you and want to talk, that was great.CHICAGO IS HIS KIND OF TOWNRose was hoping the World Series went to the Cubs, who had his son, 3-year-old Derrick Jr., throw out a first pitch earlier this season. On Friday, the Chicago native will be hoping to beat the Bulls in his first game against his former team. He expects a mixed reception from fans. I know Im going to get some boos here and there but its all part of the game, its all part of the sport, he said. Its not going to affect the way I play or how badly I want to win that game.UP NEXTRockets: Visit Atlanta on Saturday to continue five-game trip with visit to former Houston center Dwight Howard. The Hawks have won the last five meetings.Knicks: Visit Chicago on Friday in first trip back to the United Center for former Bulls All-Stars Rose and Joakim Noah.Soccer Jerseys 2020 . Hey!" The lower tier of the School End of Queens Park Rangers Loftus Road was packed solid with a very festive-sounding Chelsea choral section in this particular part of South Africa Road London, W12. Soccer Jerseys For Sale .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. https://www.cheapsoccerjerseysjustwholesale.com/ . Isner, ranked No. 14, won his eighth career singles title and took the title in New Zealand for the second time after his victory in 2010. The match was similar to Isners quarterfinal victory over fifth-seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber which went to three sets, all tiebreaks and contained no breaks of serve. Cheap Soccer Jerseys . -- Josh Sterk scored once and set up two more as the Oshawa Generals edged the visiting Belleville Bulls 3-2 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. Soccer Jerseys Online . -- Claudio Bieler hadnt scored since early September, and not from the run of play since mid-July.What do you need to know about last nightss big stories? Joe McDonald gives us his take on the biggest and best. This is where we say Morning, Joe.Penguins doing it large: Captain Sidney Crosby continued his offensive prowess with a goal to help the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 7-0 win over the Arizona Coyotes on Monday. He leads the league with 21 goals and extended his points streak to seven games with 13 points during that span. The real reason the Penguins find themselves atop the Metropolitan Division is their depth, and that was on display against the Coyotes, as seven different players scored for Pittsburgh. It also helps that goalie Matt Murray is 11-2-0 with a 1.84 goals-against average and a .936 save percentage. Another big reason for the Penguins success? Coaching. Monday was the one-year anniversary of Mike Sullivan being hired as coach of the Penguins. The team is 52-23-8 and won the 2016 Stanley Cup under his tenure.Chalk one up for Rask: The Boston Bruins 2-1 overtime victory over the Montreal Canadiens meant much more than two points. The win should serve as a major confidence boost for Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask, who entered Mondays game with a terrible 5-15-3 record against the Canadiens. Actually, I was a bit surprised to see that he was starting, given his struggles against his teams historical rival. Rask responded wiith a 30-save performance to stop a three-game skid.dddddddddddd Hes already a Vezina Trophy candidate this season with a 15-5-2 record, including a 1.80 goals-against average, a .932 save percentage and three shutouts. Currently, the Bruins are in the playoffs and Rask is the reason for the teams success. If the Bruins earn a playoff berth and face the Canadiens, Mondays win will serve as an important mental victory for Rask.Big backup battle: A battle between two of the top teams in the NHL heats up Tuesday when the New York Rangers host the Chicago Blackhawks. The Rangers are riding hot goalie Antti Raanta, who is 8-1-0 with a 1.65 goals-against average, a .943 save percentage and two shutouts. He has not allowed more than two goals in 10 of his 11 games. You know fellow Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist isnt happy to be relegated to the backup role, but hes handling it the right way for the betterment of the team. At some point, New York will need Lundqvist to be Lundqvist, and eventually he will find his groove. At the other end of the ice, the Blackhawks are without their top goalie Corey Crawford (appendectomy), but Scott Darling has been outstanding as the No. 1, going 2-2-1 while replacing Crawford. ' ' '