Basketball

Charles Barkley scored 11 of his 26 points in the first 6:24 of the game as the Houston Rockets raced to a 15-point lead and breezed to their ninth straight home win, 115-96, over the Detroit Pistons on Thursday. Clyde Drexler scored 27 points, Hakeem Olajuwon added 21 and rookie Matt Maloney contributed 10 for Houston, which improved the league's best record to 19-2. Barkley grabbed eight rebounds and Drexler handed out eight assists for the Rockets, who have won four in a row and 13 of their last 14 games.

NBA: New York 90 Golden State 79; Houston 115 Detroit 96; Milwaukee 100 Seattle 97; Phoenix 95 Utah 87; Portland 99 Vancouver 78; LA Clippers 97 San Antonio 94; Sacramento 93 Dallas 86.