Evan Fournier top-scored for the Orlando Magic in scoring in their 130-107 loss to the Houston Rockets with 27 points.
Those 27 points, however, were minuscule compared to James Harden's incandescent 54 point explosion on the other end for the Rockets. Harden torched the net with 10 three-pointers and made 19-of-31 from the field to lead Houston to the 130-107 victory.
Fournier admitted that they did everything in their power to contain The Beard, but he was just too much for them. He also added that performances like last night are the reason why Harden is the MVP.
“I feel like we lost against just him tonight,” Magic guard Evan Fournier said via ESPN. “He's the MVP for a reason. We talked about in pregame that he'll take shots, and we'll just live with the results. He did not miss tonight, period.”
This masterful performance comes on the heels of a 55-point, 10-three-pointers night against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday. He also became the second player in NBA history to have two consecutive games with 10 three-pointers and the first to have back-to-back games with 50-plus points and 10 triples.
To say that Harden has been magnificent through the first quarter of the 2019-20 season is a major understatement. He is simply on another level offensively.
After having a season of historic proportions in 2018-19, the two-time scoring champ has somehow managed to turn it up a notch this season. Through 25 games this season, the 2017-18 MVP is putting up nightly averages of 39.3 points on 45-36-88 shooting splits.
The Rockets are 17-8 to begin the season. Harden could have another season in the record books should he continue doing what he's doing this season.
However, all this will go to waste if he doesn't capture that elusive NBA championship come June. With the way he is playing right now, though, Harden looks hell bent on proving his haters wrong.