The Rockets came into Friday at 9-3 and on a two-game winning streak. The Jazz came in at 1-11. It was an Emirates NBA Cup group game in Houston, in front of 18,055 fans.

Houston was short three players. Marcus Smart was serving the first game of a three-game suspension, and Steven Adams (right soleus strain) and Clint Capela (right ankle sprain) were out. Utah had no Lauri Markkanen, Jaren Jackson Jr. or Jusuf Nurkic.

Sengun scored 63 seconds in and had 10 points in the first quarter: a dunk from Fred VanVleet, a layup from Kevin Durant, a tip-in and a driving layup. The quarter ended 27-27.

In the second quarter he added nine more, five of them on free throws in less than a minute. Houston outscored Utah 36-26 in the period and led 63-53 at halftime. Sengun had 19.

Sengun’s points by quarter

The Rockets were up 67-57 early in the third quarter. Then the Jazz went on a 30-10 run. Rookie Darryn Peterson hit two threes in 41 seconds, and his 26-foot step-back gave Utah a 74-72 lead. Ace Bailey’s running jumper with 3:31 left in the quarter made it 87-77.

Houston closed the quarter on a 15-2 run. VanVleet scored seven points in less than a minute, and Sengun scored the Rockets’ last six: a tip-in, a driving layup and two free throws. It was 92-89 after three.

1. 3rd, 9:29Sengun’s 7-footer makes it 69-60 Houston.
2. 3rd, 4:30His only three of the night, assisted by Durant, cuts Utah’s lead to 82-77.
3. 3rd, 3:31Bailey’s jumper puts the Jazz up 87-77, the end of a 30-10 run.
4. 3rd, 1:02Sengun’s tip-in gives Houston an 88-87 lead.
5. 3rd, 0:03.8His free throw makes it 92-89 at the end of the quarter.

Tari Eason scored Houston’s first four points of the fourth quarter, and Bogdan Bogdanovic hit two threes for a 102-94 lead with 9:48 left. Keyonte George scored 13 points in the quarter, and Peterson’s pull-up jumper with 2:46 left cut it to 117-116.

Amen Thompson answered with a layup, and Sengun’s layup with 1:25 left made it 121-116. VanVleet’s jumper with 11.9 seconds left and two Durant free throws finished it.

The NBA said Sengun is the third player in Rockets history with at least 40 points, 10 rebounds and five assists while shooting 70 percent or better from the field, since the 1956-57 season, when field goal percentage was first recorded. The other two are Hakeem Olajuwon in 1994 and Yao Ming in 2004. All three are centers.

It was also two points short of his career high of 45.

1. 1994Hakeem Olajuwon does it first for Houston.
2. 2004Yao Ming becomes the second.
3. Nov. 13, 2026Sengun: 43 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, 17 of 24 from the field.

Sengun has played 11 of Houston’s 13 games. Before Friday he was averaging 21.1 points. The 43 lifted that to 23.1, with 9.6 rebounds and 7.6 assists a game. He has seven double-doubles, including a triple-double against Minnesota on November 5: 17 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists.

Sengun points, game by game

The Rockets have won three straight, all at home, by a combined 24 points. They are 7-1 at Toyota Center and 3-2 on the road, and they have outscored opponents by 114 points, 8.8 a game. They are 9-2 when Sengun plays and 1-1 in the two road games he missed (marked with an asterisk below).

Rockets margin, game by game

Durant had 22 points and six assists and made all 10 of his free throws. VanVleet scored 17, Eason had 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Bogdanovic scored 11 in 12 minutes on 3-of-4 threes. Thompson had 12 points and 10 rebounds in 41 minutes.

For Utah, Peterson had a career-high 28, George 27 with seven assists and Bailey 21. The three combined for 76 points. Jaxson Hayes scored 12 in 13 minutes before he left with a left knee injury.

Rockets vs. Jazz

1. Sun., Nov. 15Rockets at Washington, 7 p.m. ET (2 a.m. Monday in Cairo). The Jazz host San Antonio at 5 p.m. ET (midnight in Cairo).
2. Smart’s suspensionMarcus Smart has two games left on his three-game suspension.