HOUSTON -- The Houston Rockets came out with noticeable vim and vigor on Friday night and it carried them to a 116-111 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves at Toyota Center.

James Harden recorded his 19th double-double and matched his career high for assists in a game.

Harden finished with 29 points and 14 assists as all five Rockets starters scored in double figures.

Harden also had nine turnovers and Minnesota (22-47) turned Houston's 17 turnovers into 25 points to remain within striking distance throughout the second half.

Rockets forward Donatas Motiejunas added 17 points and nine rebounds, including a critical basket with 2:21 left after his offensive rebound and a steal that keyed a transition basket for a 110-100 lead with 1:58 left.

Forward Michael Beasley converted that turnover and produced 17 points and six boards for Houston (35-34).

Beasley was once again a force off the bench, and his offensive versatility served the Rockets well when things became frantic.

"He's everywhere," Harden said of Beasley. "He's cutting, he's knocking down the 3 (and) he's attacking. In the pick-and-roll, he's finding the pocket; he's a really good finisher with both hands. He's playing well."

Dwight Howard (10 points, 11 rebounds) and Patrick Beverley (18 points, career-high 10 assists) added double-doubles for Houston.

Minnesota center Karl-Anthony Towns posted the 40th double-double of his rookie season (game-high 32 points, 11 rebounds) as the Timberwolves matched the Rockets with five starters in double figures.

Andrew Wiggins scored 21 points and Zach LaVine chipped in 15 for Minnesota.

"I thought that it was a very high-paced game," Towns said. "We made some turnovers here and there, including me, and that really hurt us."

After a blistering start that netted the Rockets a 24-11 lead when Beasley nailed one of Houston's five first-quarter 3-pointers with 5:49 left, Minnesota turned to its reserves to work its way back into contention.

The Timberwolves parlayed four Rockets turnovers into eight points in the second quarter, and their rim attacks served as the bedrock for an 11-of-18 shooting display from the field.

Shabazz Muhammad scored nine of the Timberwolves' 29 points in the quarter as Minnesota scored 16 points in the paint and eight in transition to slice the deficit to 54-52 at the break.

"We're always going to fight until the end and we're going to do the best we can to keep ourselves in the game and give ourselves a chance to win," LaVine said. "It was such an up-and-down game, and I'm pretty tired."

Harden and Motiejunas helped restore order in the third quarter, sparking a 34-point quarter with 23 combined points.

After Towns converted a floater that cut the Timberwolves' deficit to 66-63, the Rockets responded with an 8-0 spurt. Harden later added a driving layup and a 3-pointer to rebuild the double-digit cushion.

It was a repeat of the first-quarter burst that provided Houston its working margin, which proved key against several Minnesota rallies.

"We looked at the whole first quarter (from the loss against the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday)," Beverley said. "We felt the heat from the coaching staff, we felt the heat from ourselves. We wanted to come out here and have a good game and have a good start, and we did that."

NOTES: Minnesota coach Sam Mitchell lamented the Timberwolves' recent rebounding woes, citing their lack of frontcourt heft as opposed to any issues with effort. The Timberwolves rank 24th in the NBA in defensive rebounding and have posted a minus-7.3 rebounding margin this month. Minnesota has relied heavily on 20-year-old rookie C Karl-Anthony Towns and slender C Gorgui Dieng on the glass. ... Dieng suffered a hip injury against the Grizzlies on Wednesday night but was back in the lineup. ... Rockets interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff said G James Harden is working on adjusting to how teams are defending him, a key factor in his leading the NBA with 310 turnovers. Harden committed eight turnovers against the Clippers on Wednesday night, the eighth time he has had at least that many in a game this season.