MVP candidate James Harden notched his second triple-double of the season as the Houston Rockets cemented their place in the Western Conference's top three with victory over the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night.

The Wolves were level at the break, but ended up losing by 11 points as Harden recorded 31 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, also equalling his career-high for blocks with four.

In a battle between two of the West's powerhouses, the Memphis Grizzlies outlasted the Los Angeles Clippers 90-87 in a tight game at Staples Center.

The Clippers saw their four-game winning streak come to an end, despite 30 points and 10 assists from Chris Paul. Mike Conley led the balanced Grizzlies with 18 points and seven assists.

The Miami Heat held on to seventh spot in the East by scoring a season-high 119 points in an 11-point win over the Philadelphia 76ers.

Goran Dragic shone in his second game for Miami with 23 points and 10 assists, while Luol Deng led all scorers with 29 on 11-14 shooting.

At Smoothie King Center, the New Orleans Pelicans stayed in touch with the West playoffs by completing a come-from-behind 100-97 win against the Toronto Raptors.

Luke Babbitt scored a season-high 18 for the Pelicans, including a late three-pointer that gave the hosts their first lead of the game.

Isaiah Thomas played his first game for the Boston Celtics against his former side and helped his new team over the line against the Phoenix Suns.

The diminutive point-guard scored eight of his 31 points in the final two minutes as Boston earned a 115-110 win at US Airways Center, handing the Suns their fifth loss in a row.

Like Phoenix, reigning champions the San Antonio Spurs are also struggling and fell to their third straight defeat last night.

Despite Tim Duncan's double-double, the Spurs fell to a 90-81 defeat at the Utah Jazz, who were led by Trey Burke's 23 points.

The Brooklyn Nets won back-to-back games on the road by cruising to a 110-82 victory at the struggling Denver Nuggets.

Denver have lost 16 of 18, including seven in a row at home - their longest losing streak at Pepsi Center for 12 years.

At United Center, the Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks played out an ugly affair that the Bulls won 87-71.

Neither side shot better than 35% from the field as Chicago dominated the rebounds 62-41 to help them to victory.

Results in full: Philadelphia 76ers 108-119 Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks 71-87 Chicago Bulls, Minnesota Timberwolves 102-113 Houston Rockets, Toronto Raptors 97-100 New Orleans Pelicans, Brooklyn Nets 110-82 Denver Nuggets, Boston Celtics 115-110 Phoenix Suns, San Antonio Spurs 81-90 Utah Jazz, Memphis Grizzlies 90-87 Los Angeles Clippers