Harden scores 28 in Rockets' win over Bulls

Lin was noticeably absent from the spotlight at the end of the actual game, following another poor shooting night.

Harden scored 28 points, Patrick Patterson added 20 and the Rockets snapped a three-game losing streak by beating the Bulls on Wednesday night.

"Defensively, we played pretty well," Harden said. "That's what kept us in the game. Offensively, at times, we struggled, but our defense really locked in at key moments down the stretch."

Toney Douglas, who replaced Lin late in the game, swished a 3-pointer and sank two free throws in the final 1:11 as Houston won for the 33rd consecutive time when holding its opponent below 90 points, the NBA's longest current streak.

Lin went 2 for 9 and scored only four points in his final game before facing his former team when the New York Knicks on Friday. He came in shooting 34 percent from the field and 24 percent from 3-point range.

"I'm happy because we had lost three in a row and needed a win," Lin said. "Me, in terms of how I'm playing, I'm a little disappointed in myself. It's just a matter of continuing to fight, continuing to get better."

Lin went 5 for 15 in a loss in Utah on Monday night, and he was 15 for 50 overall from the field over his previous five games. He was getting the shots he likes on Wednesday night, they just weren't falling.

"It was just one of those things where I haven't had the rhythm I've wanted to have," Lin said. "That'll come over time."

Nate Robinson scored 21 off the bench, Luol Deng added 19 and Carlos Boozer had 13 points and 15 rebounds for the Bulls, who've lost three in a row for the first time in Tom Thibodeau's three seasons as coach.

The Bulls forced 23 Houston turnovers and outrebounded the Rockets 48-45, but went 2 for 16 from 3-point range and struggled to find any offensive flow.

"There are a lot of things we need to do," Deng said. "We've just got to put a whole 48 minutes together, just got to stay mentally strong. We've got to get a win and get it rolling again."