Hawks 126, 76ers 98

When Philadelphia went on a 13-0 run in the third quarter to get back into the game, Kent Bazemore wasn’t worried.

He knew it was his turn to take over.

Bazemore scored 22 points, Paul Millsap and Al Horford had 18 apiece and Atlanta blew out the 76ers on Thursday night to snap a two-game losing streak.

Bazemore had nine points and two steals over the final 3:12 of the third quarter to help the Hawks turn an 11-point lead into a 21-point advantage.

Atlanta poured it on from there, surging to a 35-point lead en route to its most lopsided win of the season.

“A lot of things went right for me there,” Bazemore said. “It’s not like that every night but as long as my effort’s consistent, I think I’ll be able to make a few plays here and there.”

Dennis Schroder added 14 points off the bench, including 10 in the first 3:16 of the fourth quarter. The Hawks shot 53 percent from the field and 42 percent from 3-point range against the NBA’s worst team.

Atlanta had assists on 36 of its 49 baskets, with 12 players recording one. The Hawks are the only team this season with at least 36 assists in multiple games.

“I thought the ball really moved,” Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer said. “There were some possessions where it just kept moving from one side to the other. When we play like that, that’s when we’re at our best.”

Rookie Jahlil Okafor led the Sixers with 21 points, while Nerlens Noel had nine points and 13 rebounds. Recently acquired point guard Ish Smith finished with 12 points and seven assists.

The Hawks forced the Sixers into 22 turnovers, including 10 in the third quarter. Atlanta finished with 33 fast-break points.

“We played with no spirit tonight,” Sixers coach Brett Brown said. “We played with no fight tonight. . I give them a lot of credit in how they shared and moved the ball, but I thought that our defense was poor.”

After the Sixers jumped ahead by six late in the first quarter, the Hawks took control with an 18-1 run to lead 36-22. Mike Scott scored nine points during the stretch, including a 3-pointer to beat the first-quarter buzzer after four sharp passes in five seconds threw the Philly defense off balance.

The Hawks built their lead to 17 by halftime, before Bazemore took charge in the pivotal third quarter.

“I thought Baze, the last four or five minutes of the third quarter, was everywhere,” Budenholzer said. “He was making plays defensively and on the offensive end of the court.”

Rockets 103, Jazz 94

James Harden scored 33 points to lead Houston to its second victory over Utah in four days.

The Rockets won 93-91 Monday in Salt Lake City. Harden had 30 points in that one and has scored at least 30 in three of his last four games.

Playing without Dwight Howard, who sat out with lower back tightness, the Rockets beat the Jazz for the 10th time in the last 12 meetings.

Gordon Hayward scored 15 points for Utah. Center Rudy Gobert played for the first time since spraining a left knee ligament on Nov. 30. He was limited to just 15 minutes but chipped in six points and three rebounds.

Kings 118, Lakers 115

DeMarcus Cousins had 29 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, and the Kings blew all of a 27-point lead in the second half before beating the Lakers in Kobe Bryant’s last Sacramento appearance.

Although the Kings were ahead 25-4 five minutes into the game, they needed a late rally and a go-ahead basket from Rajon Rondo to spoil the night for the 37-year-old Bryant, who thrilled the partisan crowd with 28 points.

Bryant made 10 of 18 shots and was 6 for 8 on free throws. But he was on the bench for the night by the time the Lakers made a huge comeback to take the lead down the stretch.

Rookie D’Angelo Russell scored 11 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter before having to leave with an ankle injury for the Lakers, who have dropped five straight games to the Kings and have the NBA’s second-worst record behind Philadelphia.