The Houston Rockets found the recipe victory in a game that they were not favored to win.

The Oklahoma City Thunder came to the Toyota Center with a 3-0 record playing at the top of their game on both offense and defense, while the Rockets could not put two halves together in their first three games of the season.

Monday night, the Rockets started playing like the team that has been predicted to win 58 to 60 games.

Although Houston started off slow, James Harden, Dwight Howard and the rest of the team kept pace with OKC.

In the third quarter, the Rockets finally started playing as a team and doubled the Thunder 28 to 14, giving them an 82 to 79 lead to start the fourth quarter.

Both teams fought back and forth in the final quarter, but it would come down to the final seconds with Howard on the line.

All the stars were aligned for the team because not only did Howard sink one free throw to make it a two-possession game, he made them both.

Howard finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots only to be out shined by Harden, who had 37 points, three assists and three steals.

For the Thunder Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook combined for 54 points, 22 rebounds and 13 assists.

The Rockets will host the Orlando Magic tonight at Toyota Center.