Houston Rockets @ Denver Nuggets
Saturday, December 20, 2025 at 5:00 PM ET
Ball Arena, Denver, CO | Game ID: 22500386
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
DEN 29 16 21 35 101HOU 26 27 29 33 115
ESPN UpdateESPN Update
Durant scores 31, Sheppard's 11-point flurry helps Rockets end Nuggets' 6-game win streak, 115-101
DENVER -- — Kevin Durant scored 31 points, Reed Sheppard scored the final 11 points of the third quarter to blow open a close game, and the Houston Rockets rolled past the Denver Nuggets 115-101 on Saturday.
Sheppard was 6 for 9 from long range and scored 28 points. His last bucket came on a steal and a slam after the Nuggets reserves had trimmed a 21-point deficit to 107-97 in the closing minutes.
The Rockets avenged a loss earlier in the week at Denver and snapped the Nuggets' six-game winning streak. Durant was 5 for 6 from 3-point range and Jabari Smith was 5 for 11 from long range for 22 points.
The Rockets shot 19 of 35 from long range (54%) to Denver’s 8 of 29 (27%).
Nikola Jokic led Denver with 25 points and Jamal Murray scored 16.
Denver coach Dave Adelman was ejected with 8:40 left in the game after arguing that Jokic should have gotten a whistle.
The Nuggets had pulled to within 71-66 with 1:29 left in the third quarter when Sheppard swished a pair of 3-pointers around a turnover by Murray. He sank two free throws and capped his run with another 3-pointer that gave the Rockets an 82-66 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Little went right for Denver, which was without star defender Peyton Watson (right trunk bruise) to guard Durant.
The rematch came three days after Rockets coach Ime Udoka was fined $25,000 for publicly criticizing the officiating in Houston’s 128-125 overtime loss to the Nuggets on Monday night.
He had little to complain about in this one, especially after Sheppard's 3s short-circuited Denver's comeback.
The Rockets took a 53-45 halftime lead after Josh Okogie hit a trio of 3-pointers, fueling an 11-0 run in the second quarter that helped Houston take control.
Up next Rockets: Visit the Sacramento Kings on Sunday night.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
DENBB B. Brown
CJ C. Johnson
HT H. Tyson
JM J. Murray
JP J. Pickett
JS J. Strawther
JV J. Valančiūnas
JO Jokic
NJ N. Jokić
SJ S. Jones
TH T. Hardaway Jr.
VA Valanciunas
ZN Z. Nnaji
HOUAH A. Holiday
AS A. Sengun
AT A. Thompson
JO J. Okogie
JS J. Smith Jr.
KD K. Durant
RS R. Sheppard
SA S. Adams
DEN/HOU the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur