g McGregor would be a major financial hit to the city of Las Vegas. According to NSAC records, McGregor has headlined fo

DENVER -- The Houston Rockets sure didnt look -- or play -- like a tired team.James Harden scored 20 points and the Rockets led from start to finish in beating the Denver Nuggets 128-110 on Friday night.Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson had 18 points each and Sam Dekker added 17 for Houston, which completed an impressive back-to-back road sweep that began with a 132-127 win over Golden State in double overtime Thursday.The latest victory came despite the Rockets 5 a.m. Friday arrival in Denver. Most of the players and coaches got little sleep before playing the Nuggets.Its a good win for us, Harden said. Last night, double-overtime game, getting in at 5 a.m. and not really sleeping. ... We got off to a really good start, guys knocked down shots and just rode that wave the entire game.Rockets coach Mike DAntoni said the win was especially gratifying because of the circumstances and the way his team played.A lot of positives, he said. They found the energy to go ahead and finish up the game. It wasnt always pretty. Its a special group that can conjure that kind of energy in altitude after getting in at 5 oclock in the morning.Wilson Chandler had 24 points to lead the Nuggets, who had won three straight against the Rockets. The Nuggets have lost four of five overall and fell to 3-7 this season at home, the high-altitude venue where they once routinely dominated.Moreover, coach Michael Malone lit into his squad after the game over its lackluster performance.Its one thing to lose games but when youre outworked on your home floor -- Miami did it, Houston did it -- I have no explanation, Malone said. All I know is that it is unacceptable and thats why I do apologize to our fans because they deserve better.Were a bad team right now and I have to start doing a much better job because the direction were headed right now is in a bad, bad place.Up by 10 points at halftime, the Rockets took a 99-84 lead into the fourth quarter and kept the pressure on the rest of the way as part of a sharpshooting display that included converting 17 of 37 3-point attempts against a listless Nuggets defense. Denver went 9 of 30 from beyond the arc.The Rockets took a 73-63 halftime lead over the Nuggets, who allowed a season high in points by an opponent over the first two quarters.Houston led by as many as 15 in the first half, hitting nine 3-pointers, including four by Anderson, to gain early separation with its highest-scoring output over the first two quarters this season.The lack of defensive urgency by Denver was epitomized by Gordons fast-break layup at the halftime buzzer as he drove the length of the court virtually uncontested in the final 3 seconds of the period.TIP-INSRockets: F Trevor Ariza left the game in the final minutes with back spasms, DAntoni said, apparently after coming down awkwardly while going for a rebound. ... Houston has made at least 10 3-pointers in 19 consecutive games, the longest streak of its kind in NBA history. ... Houstons previous high for first-half points was 71 against the Los Angeles Lakers on Oct. 26. ... The Rockets are 7-2 on the road since beginning the season 2-3.Nuggets: C Nikola Jokic missed the game because of a sore left wrist. ... G Gary Harris remains sidelined with a right foot injury. ... G Will Barton returned from an ankle injury that sidelined him for the previous two games.QUOTABLEThey played harder than us. They wanted the game more than us. It was a bad loss on our home court. They came back very, very late (to Denver). We should have jumped on them since the beginning and it was the opposite. -- Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari.UP NEXTRockets: Completed a five-game trip and return home to host the Boston Celtics on Monday night.Nuggets: Play at Utah on Saturday night in the first stop of a six-game trip.Devin Singletary Youth Jersey . "We have always prided ourselves on the way we play defence. Having two big pieces back is going to be a key for us moving forward for years to come," said Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen. Ed Oliver Jersey .com) - The Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks both take aim at their first wins of the season on Saturday, as the Canucks open their home slate at Rogers Arena. http://www.shoptheofficialbills.com/Elite-Jordan-Poyer-Bills-Jersey/ . Scott won the Australian PGA last week in his first event in Australia since winning the U.S. Masters in April. American Matt Kuchar, ahead by two strokes with four to play and even with Scott with one to go, double-bogeyed the 18th after taking two shots to get out of a bunker. Devin Singletary Bills Jersey . Just as Montreal was settling into the first full working week of a new year, the Impact announced the appointment of their new head coach. O. J. Simpson Bills Jersey . "Four now," Carl Gunnarsson told the Leaf Report proudly following a 5-2 victory over New York on Tuesday night, the clubs fifth straight at home.One of the UFCs biggest stars no longer wishes to compete in the Fight Capital of the World.According to UFC president Dana White, Irish superstar Conor McGregor says hell never fight in Las Vegas again after being fined $150,000 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission this week.I wasnt thrilled about it when it happened and we did the best we could to contain it at the time, but come on, White said during a guest appearance on The Herd with Colin Cowherd on FS1. The other problem with that is Conor McGregor hit me yesterday and said, I dont ever want to fight in Nevada again. Ever.McGregor (20-3) was penalized for his actions during a pre-fight news conference ahead of UFC 202 on Aug. 20. McGregor and his opponent, Nate Diaz, threw water bottles and cans of energy drink at each other after Diaz abruptly stood up and exited early.The $150,000 represented 5 percent of McGregors record-breaking $3 million fight purse. He was also ordered to perform 50 hours of community service.McGregors agent, Audie Attar, told SportsCenter earlier this week tthe teams main concern was making sure McGregor wouldnt be suspended, as hes scheduled to fight Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 on Nov.dddddddddddd 12. He did not say whether McGregor intends to appeal the fine.McGregor reacted to the fine in a tweet:?Losing McGregor would be a major financial hit to the city of Las Vegas. According to NSAC records, McGregor has headlined four of the five highest-grossing gates in MMA history in Nevada. His featherweight title fight against Jose Aldo at UFC 194 in December generated a gate of $10 million.Now, how does that make sense for the state of Nevada? White asked. Youre going to try to fine this kid and Nate that much money -- it just makes people not want to fight in our state, and thats not a good thing.Diaz (19-11), who lost to McGregor at UFC 202 via majority decision, is also facing potential discipline for the news conference. His disclosed purse for the bout was $2 million. ' ' '