DALLAS (AP) — Eric Gordon scored a season-high 33 points, DeMarcus Cousins had his best game for Houston with 28 points and 17 rebounds and the Rockets beat the Dallas Mavericks 133-108 on Saturday night.

John Wall had seven points and eight assists after missing five straight games with right knee soreness. It was the first game for Wall since the James Harden trade. The Rockets were without a key piece of that deal as Victor Oladipo rested a sore right quadriceps.

Luka Doncic scored 26 points while sitting the entire fourth quarter with the game out of reach. The Slovenian star was again without European sidekick Kristaps Porzingis, who rested his surgically repaired right knee as the Mavericks finished five games in seven days by completing their second back-to-back in that stretch.

The Rockets were also playing on a second consecutive night for the first time this season and won both to improve to 3-3 since the Harden trade.

“It was a very complete game for us on both ends of the floor, especially on a back to back,” coach Stephen Silas said a night after a 103-102 victory at Detroit. “Really good trip for us.”

Houston never trailed as Cousins opened the scoring with a three-point play and scored eight points in the first three minutes. Cousins matched his most points since a torn Achilles tendon ended his final season with New Orleans in 2017-18.

Gordon was 6 of 9 from 3-point range as the Rockets shot 43% (16 of 37) from beyond the arc. Cousins, who came in shooting 26% overall and 24% from long range, was 9 of 15, including 4 of 8 from 3.

“My thing is the shot quality,” Silas said about Cousins. “He works conscientiously on his 3-point shot. I knew it would come around. We just had to make sure he was getting good, quality shots. He did that tonight.”

The Rockets led 70-59 after the highest-scoring half against Dallas this season. The Mavericks pulled within 74-71 early in the third quarter before Houston finished the quarter on a 30-12 run.

“We don’t have any excuses,” Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. “The energy was a factor. We were able to get it up in spurts, but weren’t able to sustain it. They had more juice.”

TIP-INS

Rockets: Wall played 21 minutes when coach Stephen Silas said he would watch his minutes closely and make sure he didn’t play long stretches. … David Mwaba scored a season-high 18 points, and Mason Jones had 16.

Mavericks: Tim Hardaway Jr., who was 0 of 12 from the field in the most recent Dallas loss against Toronto, missed all five shots in the first half before going 4 of 8 after halftime and finishing with 15 points. … Doncic had eight assists and five rebounds. … Boban Marjanovic matched Hardaway with 15 points, and Trey Burke had 13.

SITTING PORZINGIS

Carlisle said the Mavericks figured they would rest Porzingis given it was their seventh game in 11 days since the 7-foot-3 Latvian made his debut after the offseason surgery. Carlisle left little doubt Dallas was upbeat about Porzingis’ progress.

“He’s doing exceptionally well,” Carlisle said. “It was a decision we talked about a lot, and that was one reason he didn’t get downgraded until later in the day. Things are in a really good place.”

HOMECOMING, SORT OF

Silas was back in Dallas after the first-year Rockets coach spent the past two seasons as an assistant with the Mavericks. But it wasn’t much of a homecoming.

First of all, Silas’ family made the move from Dallas to Houston the day before the game, “so we missed each other.” Even if his family had still been in town, Silas wouldn’t have been able to see them because of COVID-19 protocols.

“Obviously, being here, a place that’s so close to my heart but no fans and you’re not allowed to even shake their hands or hug,” Silas said. “Yeah, we’re going to Dallas, but it’s on a back-to-back and there’s no fans and I can’t even take a walk on the Katy Trail (near the Mavericks’ arena). It’s a downer.”

UP NEXT

Rockets: Washington visits Tuesday in one of three Houston home games in a span of 12 overall. It’s the second scheduled game for the Wizards since a six-game shutdown because of COVID-19 protocols.

Mavericks: Denver visits Monday to finish just the second set of consecutive home games for the Mavericks, who played 11 of their first 15 on the road.

• Qualifiers from Zones 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 confirmed
• Playoffs in Zone 4 to take place on 28 January
• Zone finals in February to crown six zone winners

After weeks of intense qualification, 27 out of 42 teams have qualified for the FIFAe Club World Cup 2021™. The pinnacle event of competitive EA SPORTS FIFA for teams will feature the best clubs from each of the six zones and will take place from 24-28 February 2021. The reigning FIFAe Club World Cup Champion Complexity Gaming has qualified for the second time in a row.

27 teams from Zones 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 have already secured their spot in the zone finals, while the field of participants will be finalised after the Zone 4 playoffs have been finished next Thursday.

Once the qualification has been concluded, teams will be rewarded with a total prize pool of USD 105,000 and the 42 qualified teams will compete for another USD 245,000 in prize money at the FIFAe Club World Cup 2021 in late February.

The following teams have already qualified and will compete at the zone finals from 24-28 February:

The qualified teams:

Zone 1 (Oceania)

• Atlantide Wave
• Team FW AU
• Melbourne City Esports
• Dire Wolves/Black Sheep – Teams are tied on Consistency Ranking and will play the decisive game next Thursday

Zone 2 (Asia)

• GBX Esports Team
• WICKED ESPORTS
• Blue United eFC
• Kashima Antlers

Zone 3 (Africa & Middle East)

• 25e Sports
• Goliath Gaming
• Tuwaiq eSports Club
• Al-Nassr FC

Zone 5 (South America)

• ELS Torneios Online
• MGCF eSports – RMA Tech
• FC Basel 1893 eSports
• SPQR Brasil Team
• DUX Latam
• Medellin Es
• Helmet Team
• TTB Esports
• Netshoes E-Sports
• Team FW BR
• Inter eSports
• Central Español Uruguai

Zone 6 (North America)

• SB18 Esports
• Complexity Gaming
• New York City Esports
• Chivas esports

The Zone 4 teams who have made it to the playoffs taking place on 28 January, as well as all the other qualification results, are available on FIFA.gg.

Undefeated junior featherweights Angelo Leo and Stephen Fulton were originally set to fight for the then-vacant WBO super bantamweight title this past August. Unfortunately, Fulton tested positive for COVID-19 ahead of the planned scrap and Leo instead beat Tramaine Williams to capture the title.

Leo and Fulton are finally ready to face off on Saturday, meeting in the main event of a triple header from Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut (9 p.m. ET, Showtime). In a sport that often keeps young, talented and undefeated prospects separate for as long as possible, it’s a refreshing change of pace to see the commitment to putting these two in the ring for Leo’s WBO title.

“I’ve known I was going to fight Fulton for almost a year now,” Leo told The Ring. “I’ve been preparing for him for a while. Now that it has finally come, everything we have worked on has come more naturally to me.

“It’s going to be a great match up. It’s what boxing needs: You’ve got two undefeated fighters, two fighters in their prime with similar records. What more can you ask for? All the way around, on paper, it looks like a great fight. But deep down inside, I know I’ll come out with the victory.”

Can’t get enough boxing and MMA? Get the latest in the world of combat sports from two of the best in the business. Subscribe to Morning Kombat with Luke Thomas and Brian Campbell for the best analysis and in-depth news, including a preview of Showtime Boxing on Saturday night below.

The fight represents an opportunity for Fulton to become world champion after holding some secondary and fringe titles in his first 18 fights. It’s a moment Fulton says he’s ready to take advantage of.

“To me, it means everything to be a world champion from Philadelphia,” Fulton told ESPN. This is what I’ve been working for my whole career. To my city, it would show people from my neighborhood that there’s a way out. But I don’t feel any pressure because of it. This sport teaches us the discipline to perform in moments like this. The pressure is just a part of my job.”

Plus, Vic Pasilas and Raeese Aleem will square off in the co-main event with the interim WBA super bantamweight title on the line. Pasillas boasts an undefeated record at 16-0 with nine knockouts to his name. Aleem is also unbeaten at 17-0 with 11 knockouts. The winner will be next in line to challenge full WBA champ Brandon Figueroa.

Leo vs. Fulton card, odds

Prediction

Leo vs. Fulton is a very competitive fight on paper. Both men have a lot of skill and Leo easily handled a decent — though not great — opponent in Williams to win the WBO title last time out. Fulton isn’t likely to blow the doors off anyone with sheer power. He only has eight knockouts in 18 fights. But his skills are enough that he doesn’t require that kind of one-punch power. Fulton works well off the jab and has good hand speed to follow up that jab with straight shots that can connect before the opponent has even reacted to the initial shot. With neither man having that one-shot knockout power, it’s possible they have the confidence to mix it up a bit and there’s potential for an exciting fight to break out. All that said, Fulton’s edge in speed should be enough for him to get off first and control the action. Pick: Stephen Fulton via UD