Suns Lose Heartbreaker to Rockets After Kevin Durant Game-Winner

The Suns could not come up clutch for the second game in a row.

Jan 5, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Dillon Brooks (3) and Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. (10) try to block each other out in the first quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images | Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

PHOENIX -- Kevin Durant hit a game-winning 3-pointer against his former team to give the Houston Rockets (22-11) a 100-97 victory over the Phoenix Suns (21-15) at Toyota Center Monday night.

Durant cashed home the triple over Royce O'Neale with 1.1 seconds left as the Rockets overcame a 13-point third quarter deficit to knock off Phoenix.

KEVIN DURANT HITS THE CLUTCH 3 TO WIN IT FOR HOUSTON 🚨 pic.twitter.com/1lC1qjT0Ok

— NBA (@NBA) January 6, 2026

Durant, who was 1-for-11 from 3 before the final shot, finished with 26 points and 10 rebounds.

The Suns, who were on the second night of a back-to-back and did not get to Houston until this afternoon because of plane issues, had five players in double-figures led by Devin Booker's 27 points.

Dillon Brooks recorded 15 points against his former team, while O'Neale also had 15 points.

Houston outscored Phoenix 46-37 in the second half, holding the Suns to 14-for-41 (34.1%) shooting and 4-for-20 (20%) 3-point shooting in the last two quarters.

The Rockets outrebounded the Suns 51-40 and won the second-chance points 21-5.

Here's a quarter-by-quarter breakdown of what happened in the matchup:

First Quarter

The Suns got off to a 10-2 start as the Rockets missed four of their first five shots from the field.

Houston was able to get back in it after getting some shots to fall.

Jordan Goodwin came off the bench and poured in 11 points in the quarter on 4-of-4 shooting, and the Suns were ahead 29-25 through the first 12 minutes.

Phoenix shot 7-for-13 (53.8%) from deep as a team in the first quarter.

Second Quarter

After an almost 15-minute stoppage of play due to a clock malfunction, the second quarter finally got underway, but the officials had to turn off the clocks above the baskets and calculate it manually.

The Suns continued to extend their lead and went ahead 47-39 just over midway through the period after two early 3-pointers from O'Neale.

At halftime, Phoenix led 60-54 with Booker, Gillespie and Goodwin all scoring 11 points.

Durant had a game-high 13 points for the Rockets.

The two biggest differences in the first two quarters were the 3-point shooting, as the Suns were 10-for-21 (47.6) and the Rockets went 5-for-21 (23.8%) from downtown, and the fastbreak points, which Phoenix won 23-4.

Third Quarter

Even on the second night of a back-to-back, the Suns did not slow down to start the second half, going up 67-56 with 9:47 to go in the third after five early points from Brooks.

The Rockets came storming back and tied it up at 76 after a jump-shot by Thompson with 3:32 remaining.

Heading into the fourth, the game was all knotted at 78 as the Suns only shot 7-for-24 (29.2%) from the field and 2-for-12 (16.7%) from deep in the quarter.

Booker had 15 points through three quarters to lead Phoenix, who had five double-digit scorers, whille Durant was up to 19 for Houston.

Fourth Quarter

The Rockets took their first lead since the first quarter after Reed Sheppard knocked home a jumper for the first points by either team in the final frame.

Houston stayed ahead after this and was up 94-87 going into the back half of the quarter.

The Suns cut the lead to one-point, 94-93, after Booker missed a free throw, but cashed in a 3-pointer off an offensive rebound with 3:30 left.

Phoenix went back in front after a mid-range jumper by Brooks put the Suns up 95-94 with 2:54 to go.

Booker then went 2-for-2 from the free-throw line, but an and-one by Amen Thompson tied the game back up at 97 with 1:59 remaining.

Both teams went scoreless the next several possessions, and the Suns called a timeout after a defensive rebound with 29 seconds with an opportunity to take the lead.

Booker exhausted the entirety of the clock before shooting an airball and giving the Rockets their chance with 5.1 seconds.

Durant then hit his go-ahead 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds remaining to give Houston the 100-97 victory.

Booker missed the game-tying 3-pointer on the final possession.

What's Next

The Suns will conclude their quick two-game road trip Wednesday night against the Memphis Grizzlies.