urghs offense too.Game notes K Chris Boswell (abd | Forum

NEW YORK -- James Harden and the Houston Rockets spent plenty of energy trying to knock off the champs. Air Max 95 2019 Scontate . 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. Air Max 720 Donna . 8 Iowa State on Saturday, sending the Cyclones to their third consecutive loss. The Longhorns (14-4, 3-2) got their biggest win of the season with their third in the row in the Big 12. Nike Air Max Sconti . Calgary scored on the first shift, and Michael Cammalleri scored twice as the Flames cruised to a 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday. http:///...x-97-uomo-saldi.html . They were putting most of their energy into a record-setting offensive display. PITTSBURGH -- Technically, the calls were different. In the Pittsburgh Steelers huddle, however, the translation was the same: Get the ball to LeVeon Bell and get out of the way.Six straight times in the fourth quarter last Sunday against New York, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger took the snap, turned around and put the ball in the hands of Pittsburghs increasingly versatile and seemingly tireless running back. And six straight times Bell pushed the pile forward, protecting the lead, the ball to help put the finishing touches on a 24-14 victory.Obviously were trying to end the game and obviously they know that, Bell said. Were just running the ball against their will and they cant slow us down or stop us. It gives you a motivation boost.A reality check, too.The offense that talked about putting up 30 points every week hasnt reached that total during the three-game winning streak thats pulled the Steelers (7-5) out of a midseason swoon and back into the thick of the AFC playoff race. Instead, Pittsburgh is leaning more heavily on a dominant line and Bells fresh legs.Roethlisberger has thrown it 94 times and handed off 87 times over the last 12 quarters. While he insists its simply taking advantage of what the defense is giving it, theres a little bit more at play. The wide receivers behind Antonio Brown have been a bit of a mess due to injuries and the defense is young and thin, particularly along the line. So why not burn the clock, give it to one of the best all-around players in the league and take your chances?I think LeVeon got it going, said tackle Chris Hubbard, who occasionally enters as a tight end to give the Steelers a little more push up front. We found what were good at and what were comfortable with and we got into a rhythm.One that might not be so great for fantasy owners but works pretty well on the actual field. It might not look as pretty on the scoreboard as it did while averaging 34 points in their first four victories, but it seems the Steelers are fine with ditching style points for substance.At the end of the day, its December football, Bell said. We understand everybody is fighting for position. We just want to get the job done. Thats all there is too it.The explosivenness Pittsburgh showcased early in the year has been replaced by something more pragmatic. Air Max 97 Prezzi Bassi. The Steelers have 17 scoring drives this season of 10 or more plays. Six of them have come over the last three weeks. Its also taken some of the pressure off a defense that has risen from 30th in yards allowed to a respectable 14th over the last month.Roethlisberger gave much of the credit to offensive coordinator Haley, who is among the leagues most creative play callers -- look no further than Bells option pass last week (which he threw away when nothing developed) -- but who also has become pretty effective at adapting quickly. He borrowed the six-lineman formation from Oakland once guard Ramon Foster and tackle Marcus Gilbert returned from injury, freeing up Hubbard to experiment at tight end.While there are at least two calls out of the six-lineman set that send Hubbard out for a pass, in reality when hes in the game theres not much disguising what is coming. The fact the Steelers are able to execute anyway is a testament to execution. Thats why the vibe was so electric during that clinching drive against one of the leagues best defensive lines.We just got to keep rolling, Hubbard said. We want that clock to roll out as much as possible so the other team wont get the ball back.Turns out keepaway can be just as effective as putting the scoreboard on tilt. Considering the wintry conditions that potentially await in Buffalo (6-6) on Sunday, the most direct path to the playoffs will likely continue to be through Bell. Thats fine by him.I was born for this, he said.Pittsburghs offense too.Game notes K Chris Boswell (abdomen), NT Javon Hargrave (concussion), WR Darrius Heyward-Bey (foot) and S Shamarko Thomas (concussion) did not practice Wednesday. ... RB DeAngelo Williams (knee) was limited. ... Pittsburgh named LB Arthur Moats as its nominee for the NFLs Walter Payton Man of the Year Award given annually to players who make significant contributions both on and off the field.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '