James Harden's DEFENSE closed out a game & 10 more things from Monday night's games

Yes, James Harden finished with 26 points on 50 percent shooting. And yes, he tallied 17 assists, including 14 dimes in the first half.

But with the game on the line, Harden came through on defense to complete Houston’s 13-point comeback effort against New Orleans.

Harden finished with six steals against the Pelicans. Only seven players in NBA history have finished with as many steals to go with at least 17 points and 17 assists: John Stockton, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Kevin Johnson, Terry Porter, Maurice Cheeks and Kelvin Ransey.

Sure, the Pelicans didn’t have Anthony Davis. And without Davis, their roster leaves much to be desired. But the defensive effort Harden showed down the stretch had to be refreshing for Rockets fans. After all, he hadn’t been known to be a particularly strong defender for much of his career.

Houston gave up 103 points in the first three quarters. In the fourth, they outscored New Orleans 34-20 to seal the victory. We knew the Rockets’ offense would be powerful. But if their defense can step up in crunch time like it did on Monday night, they just might be serious challengers for the Western Conference crown come playoff time.

Welcome back, Milos

In his first game since Oct. 21, Milos Teodosic scored 12 points in 21 minutes, including the dagger three to beat the Raptors, 96-91.

L.A. needed him desperately.

The Thunder lost an embarrassing one to the Hornets... AT HOME

A win would have taken them back to .500, but instead, a 116-103 loss at home to Charlotte sets OKC back to 12-14. The Big 3 scored 61 points on 48 shots, but as a unit, the Thunder assisted on just 16 of 35 made shots.

The team is having a tough time shooting the ball and finding any sort of offensive consistency. OKC isn’t the team most thought they’d be.