After bouncing back from three straight losses to build a three-game winning streak, the Boston Celtics would come up short on Saturday night against the Houston Rockets. Taking on Houston on the second night of a back-to-back after they defeated the Sixers in NBA Cup action on Friday night, and the fatigue appeared obvious for Boston.
Facing a major disadvantage in the front court, Boston would see most of their second unit play in the backend of the second half, with Baylor Scheierman coming out as the team’s leading scorer. Houston would be lead by their big three of Kevin Durant, Alperen Sengun, and Amen Thompson, who combined for 59 of their team’s 128 points.
Here’s a quick recap of the Celtics blowout loss to the Houston Rockets, a game in which the Celtics shot a total of 103 field goal attempts.
Final score: Houston Rockets 128, Boston Celtics 101Keys to the game:
Big free throw disparity: The Rockets would shoot 25-35 from the free throw line in this game, while the Celtics would go 100%, shooting just 7 total free throws. Boston had 25 foul calls against them in the game, compared to Houston’s 14, and the big difference in the game’s final score was reflected at the charity stripe.
Houston’s front court dominance: Although they were able to get consistent play from their front court during their three-game winning streak, Houston’s size and length would be far too much for the Celtics in this game. The Rockets outrebounded Boston 53-36 in this game, recording 11 blocks on defense, and 34 points in the paint. With Sengun, Durant, and Steven Adams controlling the frontcourt for Houston, the Celtics had no answer all night for the trio.
Fatigue: The most eye-popping number in the game has to be the 103 field goal attempts, a lot of which came in the second half from the bench unit. Houston led the game from start to finish in this one, with their biggest lead getting as high as 36 points. On the second night of a back-to-back, 24 hours after an emotional and gutty win over the Sixers, Boston looked flat from the opening tip.
Highlight of the game: Houston goes defense to offense in one entertaining flowWhat’s next: vs. Utah Jazz, Monday, November 3, 7:30PM ET
Boston will look to get back on track on Monday, as they welcome a young and rebuilding Jazz team that is led by veteran Lauri Markkanen. Utah also has the No. 2 overall pick in this past year’s draft, Ace Bailey out of Rutgers, but he has yet to find a significant impact in the early stages of his rookie year. The game against Utah will serve as a favorable matchup with an opportunity to potentially get out to an early lead and then fall back on their second unit, to give the starters as much rest as possible as they will have five games across an eight day stretch.