Kevin Durant scores 24 in his return to Phoenix, leads the Rockets past the Suns 119-105

By DAVID BRANDT

PHOENIX (AP) Kevin Durant scored 24 points in his return to Phoenix and the Houston Rockets rallied from an early 21-point deficit and pulled away late to beat the Phoenix Suns 119-105 on Tuesday night.

The Rockets are on a seven-game winning streak and moved into a tie with the Los Angeles Lakers for the No. 4 spot in the Western Conference playoff race.

All five Houston starters scored in double figures. Durant made 5 of 9 3-pointers.

Durant, a 16-time All-Star, was greeted with a mix of boos and cheers by Suns fans when he was announced as part of the Rockets' starting lineup. He was traded to the Rockets during the offseason after spending 2 1/2 seasons in the desert in a package that brought Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green to the Suns.

The Suns jumped out to a 26-5 lead midway through the first quarter, hitting 10 of their first 15 shots, but the Rockets cut the deficit to 57-54 by halftime. Houston led early in the third quarter but Phoenix rallied to take an 84-81 into the fourth.

Houston scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter to push back into the lead and didn’t trail again. Durant hit a 3-pointer to put Rockets up 111-96 with 4:14 left.

Devin Booker scored 31 points for the Suns. The Rockets finished with a 55-34 rebounding edge.

Durant came to the Suns in 2023 as part of a four-team trade deadline deal just hours after Mat Ishbia officially took the reins of the franchise as a majority owner. The splashy move was widely praised at the time, but the Suns were never able to advance past the second round of the playoffs during his tenure.

Rockets: Host the 76ers on Thursday.

Suns: Host the Mavericks on Wednesday.

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