Houston overcomes furious rally to hand Spurs first loss at home

The Houston Rockets gave away a 23-point lead, Dwight Howard was being fouled intentionally and the disdain of the San Antonio Spurs' sellout crowd was roaring down on them in the final minutes of the game.

It was a tense situation that Houston would have folded under last season, James Harden readily admits. But the Rockets demonstrated on Saturday night that they are a different team this season, even if it is early.