Rockets beat the Mavericks 110-99 to snap a 2-game skid

HOUSTON (AP) — Alperen Sengun had 23 points, Jalen Green added 22 and the Houston Rockets built a big lead early in the second half and sailed to a 110-99 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night.

Dillon Brooks had 19 points and Cam Whitmore added 18 to help the Rockets get back on track after dropping two straight.

The Mavericks led by four midway through the second quarter before Houston used a 21-8 run to take a 61-52 lead into halftime. Green made eight points in that stretch and Whitmore added two 3-pointers.

The Rockets then opened the second half with an 11-4 spurt that pushed it to 72-56 with nine minutes left in the third.

Houston was up by 14 entering the fourth and maintained a double-digit lead throughout the quarter.

Kyrie Irving (shoulder), Klay Thompson (illness) and Dereck Lively II (hip) returned after sitting out Monday. But Naji Marshall remained out serving a four-game suspension for his role in a fight against the Suns.

Quentin Grimes led the Mavericks with 17 points off the bench. Thompson and Irving added 16 each.

Mavericks: Lost for the third time in four games playing without Luka Doncic, who strained his calf on Christmas Day. They’ll need to find a way to win without the star, who will be out at least a month.

Rockets: Didn’t miss a beat without the bench scoring of Amen Thompson, who served the first of a two-game suspension for a fight with Miami’s Tyler Herro Sunday night.

Houston’s 32-12 run to end the first half and start the second half.

Houston’s victory was helped by making 18 of 23 free throws compared to just 8 of 16 by Dallas.

Both teams are back in action Friday night. Dallas hosts Cleveland, and Houston hosts Boston.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Dallas Mavericks' Kyrie Irving, left, shoots as Houston Rockets' Dillon Brooks defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Dallas Mavericks' Dereck Lively II (2) looks to shoot as Houston Rockets' Alperen Sengun defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Dallas Mavericks' Quentin Grimes (5) is fouled by Houston Rockets' Alperen Sengun (28) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Dallas Mavericks' Dwight Powell (7) is fouled by Houston Rockets' Jae'Sean Tate (8) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Houston Rockets' Jabari Smith Jr. dunks the ball against the Dallas Mavericks during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Houston Rockets' Alperen Sengun, bottom, is fouled by Dallas Mavericks' Dereck Lively II during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Houston Rockets' Alperen Sengun (28) loses the ball as Dallas Mavericks' Kyrie Irving (11) and Dereck Lively II defend during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Houston Rockets' Alperen Sengun (28) is fouled by Dallas Mavericks' Daniel Gafford (21) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Dallas Mavericks' Jaden Hardy (1) has his shot blocked by Houston Rockets' Jalen Green (4) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli airstrikes killed at least 10 people including a child early Saturday in southern Gaza, hospital staff said, while a new effort at ceasefire talks was said to be underway in Qatar.

A small boy cried over his father, and a woman draped herself over one of the bodies wrapped in white plastic. The three airstrikes hit a car, a house and people on the street in the city of Khan Younis, according to staff at Nasser Hospital.

There was no immediate comment from Israel's military.

Gaza’s Health Ministry said at least 59 people had been killed and more than 270 injured by strikes in the past 24 hours.

There were no immediate statements on the indirect negotiations in Qatar’s capital, Doha, toward a ceasefire after nearly 15 months of war. The Hamas militant group on Friday said talks had resumed and added that it was committed to reaching an agreement. It warned against misinformation, which it said can undermine public confidence.

The talks mediated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt have repeatedly stalled as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vows to press on in Gaza until Hamas is destroyed. Fighters with Hamas, which wants Israeli forces out of Gaza completely, continue to regroup in areas where Israeli forces withdraw.

The war is by far the deadliest round of fighting between Israel and Hamas. It began when Hamas and other militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. Around 100 hostages are still in Gaza, at least a third believed to be dead. Families of hostages and others have rallied weekly for months to press Netanyahu to reach a ceasefire deal that would bring loved ones home.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 45,717 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the territory’s Health Ministry, which says women and children make up more than half the dead. The ministry doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants in its tally.

The ministry says other, uncounted bodies remain beneath rubble or in areas where emergency responders cannot reach.

Israel’s military says it only targets militants and blames Hamas for civilian deaths because its fighters operate in dense residential areas. The army says it has killed 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.

The war has caused widespread destruction and displaced about 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, many of them multiple times. Winter has now arrived, and hundreds of thousands are sheltering in tents near the sea. A small number of children have died from exposure to the cold.

Meanwhile, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, relatives mourned an 18-year-old Palestinian who the Palestinian Health Ministry said was killed Friday during clashes with Israel’s army in the Balata refugee camp in Nablus. The ministry said nine other people were injured.

Palestinian health officials have said Israeli raids throughout the West Bank since Oct. 7, 2023, have killed more than 800 Palestinians. Israel says most of these are militants, but youths throwing stones and people not involved in confrontations have also been killed.

A fragile ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah has held up for over a month, although its terms seem unlikely to be met by the agreed-upon 60-day deadline. Israel and Hezbollah had exchanged fire almost daily since the war in Gaza began.

Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

Relatives mourn during the funeral of Palestinian Muhammad Abu Amer, 18, who was killed at night in an Israeli army raid, in the West Bank refugee camp of Balata, Nablus, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Relatives mourn over the body of Palestinian Muhammad Abu Amer, 18, who was killed at night during an Israeli army raid at his funeral in the West Bank refugee camp of Balata, Nablus, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Mourners carry the body of Palestinian Muhammad Abu Amer, 18, who was killed at night in an Israeli army raid during his funeral in the West Bank refugee camp of Balata, Nablus, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Palestinians carry white sacks containing the bodies of those killed in overnight Israeli airstrikes on the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Palestinians attend funeral prayers for two of the ten people killed in overnight Israeli airstrikes on the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Mourners carry the body of a Palestinian killed in overnight Israeli airstrikes, during his funeral in the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Palestinians inspect a car targeted in an overnight Israeli airstrike that killed its occupants in the town of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Relatives of a Palestinian killed in overnight Israeli strikes, mourn over his body outside the morgue of Nasser hospital in the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)