Three Takeaways As Houston Rockets Came Up Short Against Dallas Mavericks

Saturday night marked the finale of the Houston Rockets' brief two-game road trip. But they won't return home with a maintained winning momentum as the Dallas Mavericks secured a 110-104 solid win on another marquee Texas showdown.

With the loss in Dallas, the Rockets' four-game win skid has been snapped.

The Rockets attempted to make a final push against the Mavericks down the stretch. The Mavs were up 57-50 at halftime and led by as many as 17, until the Rockets cut it to 106-101 with 67 seconds left in regulation.

But the Mavericks didn't lose their composure and ultimately closed it out to beat Houston. The desperate Dallas squad officially ended their four-game downslide with the victory.

Here are the game's main takeaways:

1. Alperen Sengun Goes Down With An Ankle Injury

The primary concern right now for Houston is Alperen Sengun's condition.

The Turkish star suffered an injury early in the first quarter as he landed awkwardly on Mavericks center Daniel Gafford's foot while attempting to grab a rebound. He grabbed his right ankle and was able to walk on his own to the bench.

This is the play where Alperen Sengun got hurt, rolling his right ankle when landing on a rebound attempt. https://t.co/vEohvYuD61 pic.twitter.com/VVxGTjqmQh
— ClutchFans (@clutchfans) January 4, 2026

Sengun headed to the locker room for further checking. He was initially listed as questionable to return, but the Rockets ultimately ruled him out due to a right ankle sprain.

This just marks the second consecutive appearance of Sengun after his two-game absence due to left calf tightness. The Rockets can only hope that his ankle injury isn't severe and won't require him to miss a significant time.

2. Inconsistent Night Haunted Houston

This weekend, the Rockets were ice-cold from the field and couldn't match the highly consistent shooting of the Mavericks. The entire team shot just 39 percent from the field and only went 10-41 from beyond the arc.

Jabari Smith Jr. mainly struggled from his shooting. The Houston forward only had seven markers in a brutal 2-13 shooting (1-7 from threes) in 37 minutes. And although he finished with 16 points, Tari Eason was also inconsistent by going just 6-16 field goals made.

Off the bench, Reed Sheppard was also rusty as he finished with just eight points in 3-10 shooting.

3. Kevin Durant Powers Rockets On A Huge Losing Effort

Kevin Durant was simply special again for the Rockets, as he finished with 34 points, seven assists and five boards across 38 minutes.

In the end, it was just unfortunate as most of the group failed to step up. Only Amen Thompson offered quality support with 20 points, 12 boards and three steals.

If Sengun is unavailable for a significant amount of time, Durant deserves more help again from the Rockets in order to stack up wins.