Game ID: 22500301
Houston Rockets @ Utah Jazz
Sunday, November 30, 2025 at 3:00 PM ET
Delta Center, Salt Lake City, UT
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
UTA 21 27 20 33 101HOU 30 37 31 31 129
HOU @ UTA ScoutingHOU @ UTA Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
UTA availability going into 11/21 · 2 days' restOUT Kessler missed 9 since 11/02, out tonight
OUT Clayton Jr. missed 3 since 11/13, returns tonight: 12 min (67% of 18)
OUT Tshiebwe missed 14 since 10/22, out tonight
OUT Hendricks missed 5 since 11/10, returns tonight: 8 min (54% of 15)
BACK Harkless back 11/18 after 2, 3 min since (13% of 21)
BACK Anderson back 11/18 after 4, 20 min since (100% of 20)
UTA availability going into 11/23 · 1 day's restOUT Kessler missed 10 since 11/02, out tonight
OUT Tshiebwe missed 15 since 10/22, out tonight
BACK Harkless back 11/18 after 2, 3 min since (13% of 21)
BACK Anderson back 11/18 after 4, 20 min since (100% of 20)
BACK Clayton Jr. back 11/21 after 3, 12 min since (67% of 18)
BACK Hendricks back 11/21 after 5, 8 min since (54% of 15)
UTA availability going into 11/24 · back-to-backOUT Kessler missed 11 since 11/02, out tonight
OUT Harkless missed 2 since 11/21, out tonight
OUT Anderson missed 2 since 11/21, returns tonight: 24 min (117% of 20)
OUT Tshiebwe missed 16 since 10/22, out tonight
BACK Clayton Jr. back 11/21 after 3, 12 min since (67% of 18)
BACK Hendricks back 11/21 after 5, 4 min since (29% of 15)
UTA availability going into 11/28 · 3 days' restOUT Kessler missed 12 since 11/02, out tonight
OUT Harkless missed 3 since 11/21, out tonight
OUT Tshiebwe missed 17 since 10/22, out tonight
BACK Anderson back 11/18 after 4, 22 min since (108% of 20)
BACK Clayton Jr. back 11/21 after 3, 14 min since (81% of 18)
BACK Hendricks back 11/21 after 5, 4 min since (29% of 15)
UTA availability going into 11/30 · 1 day's restOUT Kessler missed 13 since 11/02, out tonight
OUT Williams missed 2 since 11/24, out tonight
OUT Harkless missed 4 since 11/21, out tonight
OUT Tshiebwe missed 18 since 10/22, out tonight
OUT Hendricks missed 2 since 11/24, out tonight
BACK Anderson back 11/18 after 4, 22 min since (108% of 20)
BACK Clayton Jr. back 11/21 after 3, 13 min since (70% of 18)
UTA availability going into 12/01 · back-to-backOUT Kessler missed 14 since 11/02, out tonight
OUT Williams missed 3 since 11/24, out tonight
OUT Harkless missed 5 since 11/21, out tonight
OUT Tshiebwe missed 19 since 10/22, out tonight
OUT Hendricks missed 3 since 11/24, out tonight
BACK Anderson back 11/24 after 2, 24 min since (120% of 20)
BACK Clayton Jr. back 11/21 after 3, 14 min since (77% of 18)
UTA availability going into 12/04 · 2 days' restOUT Kessler missed 15 since 11/02, out tonight
OUT Williams missed 4 since 11/24, returns tonight: 8 min (34% of 24)
OUT Harkless missed 6 since 11/21, out tonight
OUT Tshiebwe missed 20 since 10/22, out tonight
OUT Hendricks missed 4 since 11/24, returns tonight: 7 min (47% of 15)
BACK Anderson back 11/24 after 2, 24 min since (120% of 20)
UTA availability going into 12/05 · back-to-backOUT Kessler missed 16 since 11/02, out tonight
OUT Harkless missed 7 since 11/21, out tonight
OUT Tshiebwe missed 21 since 10/22, out tonight
BACK Williams back 12/04 after 4, 8 min since (34% of 24)
BACK Anderson back 11/24 after 2, 22 min since (108% of 20)
BACK Hendricks back 12/04 after 4, 7 min since (47% of 15)
UTA availability going into 12/07 · 1 day's restOUT Kessler missed 17 since 11/02, out tonight
OUT Harkless missed 8 since 11/21, out tonight
OUT Tshiebwe missed 22 since 10/22, out tonight
BACK Williams back 12/04 after 4, 8 min since (34% of 24)
BACK Hendricks back 12/04 after 4, 7 min since (47% of 15)
HOU availability going into 11/19 · 2 days' restOUT Finney-Smith missed 12 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 11/12 after 2, 11 min since (79% of 14)
HOU availability going into 11/21 · 1 day's restOUT Eason missed 2 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 13 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 11/12 after 2, 13 min since (95% of 14)
HOU availability going into 11/24 · 2 days' restOUT Eason missed 3 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 14 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 11/12 after 2, 13 min since (96% of 14)
HOU availability going into 11/26 · 1 day's restOUT Eason missed 4 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 15 since 10/21, out tonight
HOU availability going into 11/30 · 3 days' restOUT Durant missed 2 since 11/24, returns tonight: 30 min (82% of 36)
OUT Eason missed 5 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 16 since 10/21, out tonight
NEW Holiday 14 to 21 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/01 · back-to-backOUT Eason missed 6 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 17 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Durant back 11/30 after 2, 30 min since (82% of 36)
NEW Holiday 14 to 22 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/03 · 1 day's restOUT Eason missed 7 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 18 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Durant back 11/30 after 2, 35 min since (96% of 36)
NEW Holiday 14 to 25 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/05 · 1 day's restOUT Eason missed 8 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 19 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Durant back 11/30 after 2, 34 min since (93% of 36)
NEW Holiday 14 to 25 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/06 · back-to-backOUT Eason missed 9 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 20 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Durant back 11/30 after 2, 34 min since (92% of 36)
NEW Holiday 14 to 26 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Utah comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 129, shooting 48 percent and 33 from three, 24 free throws a game; George at 28 and Markkanen at 23 a game. Without Kessler (13 straight), Williams (2 straight), Harkless (4 straight). One day's rest. Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 104, shooting 44 percent and 37 from three, 23 free throws a game; Durant at 23 and Sengun at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 9 a night. Without Durant (2 straight), Eason (5 straight), Finney-Smith (16 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Houston allowing 104 a night to Utah's 129 and the glass, where Houston has been plus-9 a night and Utah plus-1. Call it Houston 120, Utah 114.
11/21 vs OKC 112-144 — UTA notes
UTA lost 112-144. UTA shot 48% (38 of 79) to OKC's 61%, 16 of 38 from three. UTA turned it over 27 times to OKC's 13, and OKC turned those into 15 steals. The glass went 39-26 for them. George led with 20 (6 of 10, 7 of 7 at the line); Markkanen added 19, Filipowski 18. Q1 was theirs, 44-30, but the other 3 periods went 114-68 against them. They led by as many as 18. C. Williams's -33 in 20 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/23 vs LAL 106-108 — UTA notes
UTA lost 106-108. UTA took 8 more shots (94 to 86), fed by 10 offensive rebounds, but shot 43% to LAL's 44%, 13 of 40 from three, and got to the line 18 times to LAL's 27. George led with 27 (10 of 23, 4 of 10 from three); Markkanen added 20, Mykhailiuk 12. Q3 was theirs, 26-22, the deficit cut from 7 to 3, but the other 3 periods went 86-80 against them. Filipowski's -27 in 20 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/24 @ GSW 117-134 — UTA notes
UTA lost 117-134. UTA shot 47% (47 of 99) to GSW's 49%, 11 of 36 from three. George led with 28 (10 of 17, 4 of 8 from three, 4 of 7 at the line); Bailey added 21, Markkanen 17. Q1 was theirs, 35-26, but the other 3 periods went 108-82 against them. They led by as many as 11. Mykhailiuk's -22 in 20 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/28 vs SAC 128-119 — UTA notes
UTA won 128-119. UTA shot 48% (42 of 87) to SAC's 45%, 13 of 40 from three, and went to the line 40 times to SAC's 32 — 31 points from the stripe to their 23. George led with 31 (10 of 19, 4 of 9 from three, 7 of 9 at the line); Markkanen added 28, Sensabaugh 20. The hinge was Q2, 32-24: a lead of 3 became 11, and the lead reached 17.
11/30 vs HOU 101-129 — UTA notes
UTA lost 101-129. UTA shot 44% (39 of 88) to HOU's 53%, 9 of 32 from three, and got to the line 15 times to HOU's 33. The glass went 33-50 against them. Bailey led with 19 (8 of 12, 3 of 5 from three); Markkanen added 18, Nurkić 14. Q4 was theirs, 33-31, the deficit cut from 30 to 28, but the other 3 periods went 98-68 against them. George's -27 in 19 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/01 vs HOU — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Utah comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 127, shooting 46 percent and 33 from three, 23 free throws a game; George at 21 and Markkanen at 20 a game. Without Kessler (14 straight), Williams (3 straight), Harkless (5 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 102, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 24 free throws a game; Sengun at 21 and Durant at 19 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Eason (6 straight), Finney-Smith (17 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Houston allowing 102 a night to Utah's 127 and the glass, where Houston has been plus-8 a night and Utah minus-0. Call it Houston 120, Utah 112.
12/04 @ BKN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Brooklyn comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 110, shooting 43 percent and 36 from three, 22 free throws a game; Porter Jr. at 28 and Clowney at 18 a game. Without Mann (2 straight), Thomas (13 straight), Traore (7 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Utah comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 123, shooting 47 percent and 33 from three, 26 free throws a game; George at 23 and Markkanen at 22 a game. Without Kessler (15 straight), Williams (4 straight), Harkless (6 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Brooklyn wins, and the game turns on the defense, Brooklyn allowing 110 a night to Utah's 123. Call it Brooklyn 117, Utah 116, Utah keeping it close.
12/05 @ NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 106, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brunson at 26 and Towns at 23 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Anunoby (9 straight), Shamet (6 straight). One day's rest. Utah comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 123, shooting 48 percent and 36 from three, 28 free throws a game; Markkanen at 24 and George at 23 a game. Without Kessler (16 straight), Harkless (7 straight), Tshiebwe (21 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the defense, New York allowing 106 a night to Utah's 123 and the glass, where New York has been plus-6 a night and Utah minus-3. Call it New York 124, Utah 113, New York by 11.
12/07 vs OKC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Utah comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 126, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 31 free throws a game; Markkanen at 25 and George at 21 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Kessler (17 straight), Harkless (8 straight), Tshiebwe (22 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 112, shooting 52 percent and 40 from three, 30 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 35 and Holmgren at 18 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Dort (2 straight), Hartenstein (4 straight), Caruso (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, OKC allowing 112 a night to Utah's 126 and the turnovers, Utah giving it away 13 times a game to OKC's 10. Call it OKC 123, Utah 116.
11/19 @ CLE 114-104 — HOU notes
HOU won 114-104. HOU shot 46% (41 of 90) to CLE's 44%, 9 of 24 from three. The glass went 51-39 for them. Sengun led with 28 (10 of 17, 8 of 10 at the line); Durant added 20, Holiday 18. The hinge was Q1, 33-19: from level to 14 ahead, and the lead reached 22. Smith Jr. was the night's best plus/minus at +10.
11/21 vs DEN 109-112 — HOU notes
HOU lost 109-112. HOU took 17 more shots (93 to 76), fed by 18 offensive rebounds, but shot 44% to DEN's 53%, 14 of 36 from three, and got to the line 20 times to DEN's 27. Sheppard led with 27 (9 of 13, 5 of 8 from three, 4 of 6 at the line); Thompson added 22, Smith Jr. 21. Q2 was theirs, 37-21, turning a 13-point deficit into a 3-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 91-72 against them. Sengun's -16 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/24 @ PHX 114-92 — HOU notes
HOU won 114-92. HOU shot 49% (43 of 88) to PHX's 41%, 13 of 31 from three. HOU turned it over 14 times to PHX's 21. Thompson led with 28 (10 of 16, 7 of 7 at the line); Holiday added 22, Sengun 18. The hinge was Q4, 30-17: a lead of 9 became 22. Thompson was the night's best plus/minus at +25.
11/26 @ GSW 104-100 — HOU notes
HOU won 104-100. HOU shot 39% (39 of 99) to GSW's 43%, 11 of 39 from three. HOU turned it over 10 times to GSW's 16. Sheppard led with 31 (12 of 25, 4 of 12 from three); Sengun added 16, Smith Jr. 15. The hinge was Q3, 27-17: the deficit went from 12 to 2. HOU trailed 47-59 at the half and won the second half 57-41. Holiday was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
11/30 @ UTA 129-101 — HOU notes
HOU won 129-101. HOU shot 53% (46 of 87) to UTA's 44%, 11 of 31 from three, and went to the line 33 times to UTA's 15 — 26 points from the stripe to their 14. The glass went 50-33 for them. Sengun led with 27 (10 of 15, 7 of 9 at the line); Durant added 25, Smith Jr. 15. The hinge was Q3, 31-20: a lead of 19 became 30, and the lead reached 37. Sheppard was the night's best plus/minus at +33.
12/01 @ UTA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Utah comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 127, shooting 46 percent and 33 from three, 23 free throws a game; George at 21 and Markkanen at 20 a game. Without Kessler (14 straight), Williams (3 straight), Harkless (5 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 102, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 24 free throws a game; Sengun at 21 and Durant at 19 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Eason (6 straight), Finney-Smith (17 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Houston allowing 102 a night to Utah's 127 and the glass, where Houston has been plus-8 a night and Utah minus-0. Call it Houston 120, Utah 112.
12/03 vs SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 108, shooting 46 percent and 35 from three, 27 free throws a game; Durant at 23 and Sengun at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Eason (7 straight), Finney-Smith (18 straight). One day's rest. Sacramento comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 118, shooting 47 percent and 32 from three, 23 free throws a game; DeRozan at 20 and Murray at 20 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. Without Sabonis (7 straight), Plowden (9 straight), Schröder (3 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-5 a night and Sacramento minus-7 and the defense, Houston allowing 108 a night to Sacramento's 118. Call it Houston 121, Sacramento 110, Houston by 11.
12/05 vs PHX — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 104, shooting 47 percent and 33 from three, 28 free throws a game; Durant at 27 and Sengun at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 10 a night. Without Eason (8 straight), Finney-Smith (19 straight). One day's rest. Phoenix comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 115, shooting 47 percent and 36 from three, 19 free throws a game; Brooks at 24 and Gillespie at 20 a game. Without Green (12 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-10 a night and Phoenix plus-1 and the defense, Houston allowing 104 a night to Phoenix's 115. Call it Houston 119, Phoenix 109, Houston by 10.
12/06 @ DAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Dallas comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 120, shooting 49 percent and 43 from three, 19 free throws a game; Flagg at 22 and Marshall at 16 a game. Without Washington (4 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 105, shooting 49 percent and 34 from three, 28 free throws a game; Durant at 27 and Sengun at 26 a game. It has won the glass by 11 a night. Without Eason (9 straight), Finney-Smith (20 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-11 a night and Dallas minus-1 and the defense, Houston allowing 105 a night to Dallas's 120. Call it Houston 118, Dallas 113.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
UTAAB A. Bailey
BS B. Sensabaugh
IC I. Collier
JN J. Nurkić
KA K. Anderson
KF K. Filipowski
KG K. George
LM L. Markkanen
NU Nurkic
SM S. Mykhailiuk
WC W. Clayton Jr.
HOUAH A. Holiday
AS A. Sengun
AT A. Thompson
CC C. Capela
JD J. Davison
JG J. Green
JO J. Okogie
JS J. Smith Jr.
JT J. Tate
KD K. Durant
RS R. Sheppard
SA S. Adams
UTA/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
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
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
Houston Rockets dominate Utah Jazz for fifth straight road victory
SALT LAKE CITY -- — Kevin Durant scored 25 points in his return from a two-game absence, leading the Houston Rockets to a 129-101 victory over the Utah Jazz on Sunday.
Alperen Sengun had 27 points to help the Rockets win their fifth straight road victory. Steven Adams chipped in 13 points and 12 rebounds off the bench, and Amen Thompson had nine assists.
Houston’s defensive pressure led to the Rockets forcing 17 turnovers and scoring 22 points off those takeaways. The Rockets outscored Utah 21-8 in fastbreak points.
Ace Bailey led the Jazz with 19 points. Lauri Markkanen added 18 points and eight rebounds. Jusuf Nurkic totaled 14 points, nine assists, and six boards.
The Rockets held Keyonte George scoreless on 0-of-6 shooting. George also committed eight turnovers.
Houston held the Jazz to a single basket for a 6 ½ minute stretch in the first quarter, opening the door for the Rockets to go on a 19-4 run and stake out a 30-16 lead. Kevin Durant scored a basket, assisted another, and had three steals to fuel the spurt.
Utah drew as close as eight points in the second quarter, cutting Houston’s lead to 39-31 after Bailey tipped in a layup. The Rockets pulled away again behind a 16-2 run. Durant made back-to-back baskets to cap the run that put Houston up 55-33.
Houston extended its lead to 98-64 late in the third quarter following a 24-3 run sparked by back-to-back baskets from Durant and Sengun. The Jazz went six minutes without scoring a point during the run.
Up Next Rockets and Jazz play each other again in Salt Lake City on Monday night.