Game ID: 22400650
Houston Rockets @ Boston Celtics
Monday, January 27, 2025 at 7:30 PM ET
TD Garden, Boston, MA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
BOS 27 25 37 23 112HOU 31 23 31 29 114
BOS vs HOU ScoutingBOS vs HOU Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
BOS availability going into 1/20 · 1 day's restBACK Scheierman back 1/17 after 19, 4 min since (34% of 12)
BOS availability going into 1/22 · 1 day's restBACK Scheierman back 1/17 after 19, 4 min since (35% of 12)
BOS availability going into 1/23 · back-to-backBACK Scheierman back 1/17 after 19, 5 min since (40% of 12)
BOS availability going into 1/25 · 1 day's restBACK Scheierman back 1/17 after 19, 5 min since (44% of 12)
BOS availability going into 1/27 · 1 day's rest
full strength
BOS availability going into 1/29 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 2 since 1/25, out tonight
BOS availability going into 1/31 · 1 day's restOUT Horford missed 2 since 1/27, returns tonight: 26 min (90% of 28)
OUT Hauser missed 2 since 1/27, returns tonight: 14 min (69% of 21)
OUT Scheierman missed 3 since 1/25, out tonight
BOS availability going into 2/02 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 4 since 1/25, out tonight
BACK Horford back 1/31 after 2, 26 min since (90% of 28)
BACK Hauser back 1/31 after 2, 14 min since (69% of 21)
BOS availability going into 2/04 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 2 since 1/31, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 5 since 1/25, out tonight
BACK Horford back 1/31 after 2, 18 min since (65% of 28)
BACK Hauser back 1/31 after 2, 19 min since (92% of 21)
HOU availability going into 1/18 · 1 day's restOUT Smith Jr. missed 7 since 1/03, out tonight
OUT Dante missed 40 since 10/23, out tonight
OUT Landale missed 4 since 1/09, out tonight
BACK Eason back 1/16 after 13, 24 min since (101% of 24)
BACK Sheppard back 1/15 after 4, 6 min since (51% of 12)
BACK Jef. Green back 1/15 after 2, 22 min since (188% of 12)
NEW Thompson 32 to 39 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 1/20 · 1 day's restOUT Smith Jr. missed 8 since 1/03, out tonight
OUT Dante missed 41 since 10/23, out tonight
OUT Landale missed 5 since 1/09, returns tonight: 10 min (87% of 12)
BACK Eason back 1/16 after 13, 24 min since (99% of 24)
BACK Sheppard back 1/15 after 4, 6 min since (46% of 12)
BACK Jef. Green back 1/15 after 2, 22 min since (188% of 12)
NEW Thompson 32 to 38 min over the last 4
NEW Whitmore 15 to 22 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 1/22 · 1 day's restOUT Smith Jr. missed 9 since 1/03, out tonight
OUT Dante missed 42 since 10/23, out tonight
OUT Jef. Green missed 2 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK Eason back 1/16 after 13, 25 min since (102% of 24)
BACK Sheppard back 1/15 after 4, 6 min since (46% of 12)
BACK Landale back 1/20 after 5, 10 min since (87% of 12)
NEW Thompson 32 to 39 min over the last 4
NEW Whitmore 15 to 23 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 1/25 · 2 days' restOUT Smith Jr. missed 10 since 1/03, out tonight
OUT Dante missed 43 since 10/23, out tonight
OUT Sheppard missed 2 since 1/20, out tonight
OUT Jef. Green missed 3 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK Eason back 1/16 after 13, 24 min since (98% of 24)
BACK Landale back 1/20 after 5, 10 min since (87% of 12)
NEW Thompson 32 to 38 min over the last 4
NEW Whitmore 15 to 23 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 1/27 · 1 day's restOUT Smith Jr. missed 11 since 1/03, out tonight
OUT Dante missed 44 since 10/23, out tonight
OUT Holiday missed 2 since 1/22, returns tonight: 15 min (116% of 13)
OUT Sheppard missed 3 since 1/20, out tonight
OUT Landale missed 2 since 1/22, out tonight
OUT Jef. Green missed 4 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK Eason back 1/16 after 13, 23 min since (96% of 24)
NEW Thompson 32 to 40 min over the last 4
HOU availability going into 1/28 · back-to-backOUT Smith Jr. missed 12 since 1/03, out tonight
OUT Dante missed 45 since 10/23, out tonight
OUT Sheppard missed 4 since 1/20, out tonight
OUT Landale missed 3 since 1/22, returns tonight: 16 min (139% of 12)
OUT Jef. Green missed 5 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 1/27 after 2, 15 min since (116% of 13)
NEW Thompson 32 to 40 min over the last 4
HOU availability going into 1/30 · 1 day's restOUT Smith Jr. missed 13 since 1/03, out tonight
OUT Dante missed 46 since 10/23, out tonight
OUT Sheppard missed 5 since 1/20, out tonight
OUT Jef. Green missed 6 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 1/27 after 2, 16 min since (125% of 13)
BACK Landale back 1/20 after 5, 13 min since (113% of 12)
NEW Thompson 32 to 38 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 2/01 · 1 day's restOUT Smith Jr. missed 14 since 1/03, out tonight
OUT Dante missed 47 since 10/23, out tonight
OUT Sheppard missed 6 since 1/20, returns tonight: 16 min (129% of 12)
OUT Jef. Green missed 7 since 1/18, returns tonight: 8 min (73% of 12)
BACK Holiday back 1/27 after 2, 16 min since (125% of 13)
BACK Landale back 1/28 after 3, 16 min since (140% of 12)
NEW Thompson 32 to 38 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 2/03 · 1 day's restOUT Sengun missed 2 since 1/30, out tonight
OUT Smith Jr. missed 15 since 1/03, out tonight
OUT Dante missed 48 since 10/23, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 1/27 after 2, 15 min since (117% of 13)
BACK Sheppard back 2/01 after 6, 16 min since (129% of 12)
BACK Landale back 1/28 after 3, 14 min since (116% of 12)
BACK Jef. Green back 2/01 after 7, 8 min since (73% of 12)
NEW Thompson 32 to 39 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 108, shooting 44 percent and 36 from three, 18 free throws a game; Tatum at 22 and Brown at 21 a game. One day's rest. Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 116, shooting 47 percent and 39 from three, 25 free throws a game; Green at 22 and Sengun at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Smith Jr. (11 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the line, where Houston takes 25 free throws a game to Boston's 18 and the glass, where Houston has been plus-5 a night and Boston minus-1. Call it Boston 115, Houston 111, Houston keeping it close.
1/20 @ GSW 125-85 — BOS notes
BOS won 125-85. BOS shot 53% (49 of 92) to GSW's 35%, 20 of 48 from three. The glass went 50-38 for them. Tatum led with 22 (9 of 20, 3 of 10 from three); Porziņģis added 18, Brown 17. The hinge was Q3, 43-24: a lead of 15 became 34, and the lead reached 45. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +28.
1/22 @ LAC 117-113 — BOS notes
BOS won 117-113 in 1 overtime. BOS shot 46% (41 of 90) to LAC's 52%, 19 of 50 from three, and went to the line 20 times to LAC's 13 — 16 points from the stripe to their 10. J. Brown led with 25 (8 of 15, 7 of 9 at the line); Tatum added 24, White 20. The hinge was OT1, 14-10: from level to 4 ahead. Kornet was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
1/23 @ LAL 96-117 — BOS notes
BOS lost 96-117. BOS shot 38% (35 of 91) to LAL's 47%, 14 of 41 from three. The glass went 42-53 against them. Porziņģis led with 22 (9 of 16, 2 of 5 from three); Brown added 17, Tatum 16. Q3 was theirs, 20-16, the deficit cut from 19 to 15, but the other 3 periods went 101-76 against them. Horford's -22 in 24 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/25 @ DAL 122-107 — BOS notes
BOS won 122-107. BOS shot 43% (44 of 103) to DAL's 44%, 20 of 52 from three, and got to the line 19 times to DAL's 28. BOS turned it over 5 times to DAL's 12. Tatum led with 24 (8 of 22, 4 of 12 from three); White added 23, Brown 22. The hinge was Q2, 34-20: BOS came in trailing by 4 and left it ahead by 10, and the lead reached 25. Pritchard was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
1/27 vs HOU 112-114 — BOS notes
BOS lost 112-114. BOS shot 49% (39 of 80) to HOU's 45%, 15 of 39 from three. BOS turned it over 14 times to HOU's 7. Brown led with 28 (10 of 23, 3 of 9 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Tatum added 19, Kornet 18. Q3 was theirs, 37-31, turning a 2-point deficit into a 4-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 83-75 against them. They led by as many as 12. Brown's -12 in 38 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/29 vs CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 107, shooting 46 percent and 38 from three, 17 free throws a game; Brown at 22 and Tatum at 21 a game. One day's rest. Chicago comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 115, shooting 43 percent and 36 from three, 21 free throws a game; LaVine at 26 and Vučević at 16 a game. Without White (4 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 107 a night to Chicago's 115 and the turnovers, Chicago giving it away 14 times a game to Boston's 11. Call it Boston 118, Chicago 109.
1/31 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 126, shooting 47 percent and 35 from three, 28 free throws a game; Williamson at 29 and Murray at 25 a game. That is 4 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 12 a night. Without Jones (10 straight), Payton (26 straight), Robinson-Earl (2 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 110, shooting 44 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; Brown at 24 and Porziņģis at 23 a game. Without Horford (2 straight), Hauser (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 110 a night to New Orleans's 126 and the glass, where Boston has been minus-3 a night and New Orleans minus-12. Call it Boston 118, New Orleans 112.
2/02 @ PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Philadelphia comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 114, shooting 50 percent and 42 from three, 21 free throws a game; Maxey at 35 and Oubre Jr. at 21 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without George (3 straight), C. Martin (11 straight), Embiid (14 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 111, shooting 45 percent and 38 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brown at 25 and Porziņģis at 21 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest.
So: Philadelphia wins, in a game with no one edge to lean on. Call it Philadelphia 114, Boston 113, Boston keeping it close.
2/04 @ CLE — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 130 a night and allowing 110, shooting 53 percent and 39 from three, 18 free throws a game; Garland at 26 and Mitchell at 25 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has won the glass by 7 a night. Without Wade (5 straight), Okoro (9 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 109, shooting 47 percent and 40 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brown at 25 and Tatum at 24 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Cleveland has been plus-7 a night and Boston minus-4. Call it Cleveland 119, Boston 113.
1/18 @ POR 125-103 — HOU notes
HOU won 125-103. HOU shot 44% (48 of 108) to POR's 45%, 14 of 31 from three. HOU turned it over 12 times to POR's 19. The glass went 61-40 for them. Green led with 26 (10 of 17, 4 of 6 from three); Sengun added 23, Brooks 22. The hinge was Q3, 36-24: a lead of 1 became 13, and the lead reached 24. Green was the night's best plus/minus at +23.
1/20 vs DET 96-107 — HOU notes
HOU lost 96-107. HOU shot 39% (37 of 94) to DET's 48%, 11 of 39 from three. HOU turned it over 16 times to DET's 22. The glass went 39-52 against them. VanVleet led with 20 (7 of 15, 5 of 13 from three); Green added 19, Thompson 17. Q2 was theirs, 28-17, the deficit cut from 11 to 0, but the other 3 periods went 90-68 against them. Green's -22 in 30 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/22 vs CLE 109-108 — HOU notes
HOU won 109-108. HOU shot 44% (40 of 91) to CLE's 42%, 15 of 34 from three. HOU turned it over 22 times to CLE's 13, and CLE turned those into 12 steals. VanVleet led with 26 (8 of 15, 7 of 12 from three); Sengun added 18, A. Thompson 16. The hinge was Q1, 39-32: from level to 7 ahead. Eason was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
1/25 @ CLE 135-131 — HOU notes
HOU won 135-131. HOU shot 55% (45 of 82) to CLE's 52%, 13 of 28 from three, and went to the line 45 times to CLE's 26 — 32 points from the stripe to their 20. Green led with 26 (7 of 16, 5 of 11 from three, 7 of 7 at the line); Sengun added 26, A. Thompson 23. The hinge was Q2, 35-27: a lead of 6 became 14, and the lead reached 19. A. Thompson was the night's best plus/minus at +10.
1/27 @ BOS 114-112 — HOU notes
HOU won 114-112. HOU shot 45% (41 of 92) to BOS's 49%, 17 of 41 from three. HOU turned it over 7 times to BOS's 14. Brooks led with 36 (13 of 23, 10 of 15 from three); Thompson added 33, Green 12. The hinge was Q4, 29-23: HOU came in trailing by 4 and left it ahead by 2. Sengun was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
1/28 @ ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 104 a night and allowing 114, shooting 42 percent and 30 from three, 24 free throws a game; Hunter at 19 and Young at 18 a game. That is 5 straight losses. Without Johnson (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 112, shooting 45 percent and 40 from three, 25 free throws a game; Thompson at 22 and Green at 19 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Smith Jr. (12 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Houston at 40 percent from three to Atlanta's 30 and the turnovers, Atlanta giving it away 19 times a game to Houston's 14. Call it Houston 115, Atlanta 111, Atlanta keeping it close.
1/30 @ MEM — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Memphis comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 120, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; Jackson Jr. at 25 and Bane at 20 a game. Without Smart (18 straight), Williams Jr. (32 straight). 2 days' rest. Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 111, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 24 free throws a game; Thompson at 20 and Green at 18 a game. That is 4 straight wins. Without Smith Jr. (13 straight). One day's rest.
So: Memphis wins, and the game turns on the defense, Houston allowing 111 a night to Memphis's 120. Call it Memphis 117, Houston 114, Houston keeping it close.
2/01 vs BKN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 113, shooting 46 percent and 39 from three, 27 free throws a game; Thompson at 21 and Green at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Smith Jr. (14 straight). One day's rest. Brooklyn comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 95 a night and allowing 101, shooting 39 percent and 29 from three, 23 free throws a game; Russell at 18 and K. Johnson at 15 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without C. Johnson (4 straight), Thomas (14 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the arc, Houston at 39 percent from three to Brooklyn's 29 and the glass, where Houston has been plus-5 a night and Brooklyn minus-5. Call it Houston 112, Brooklyn 104.
2/03 @ NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 112, shooting 49 percent and 39 from three, 18 free throws a game; Brunson at 22 and Anunoby at 21 a game. One day's rest. Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 114, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 26 free throws a game; Green at 23 and Brooks at 20 a game. Without Sengun (2 straight), Smith Jr. (15 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the line, where Houston takes 26 free throws a game to New York's 18. Call it New York 117, Houston 112.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
HOUAH A. Holiday
AS A. Sengun
AT A. Thompson
DB D. Brooks
FV F. VanVleet
JG J. Green
JT J. Tate
JG Ja. Green
SA S. Adams
TE T. Eason
BOSDP D. Peterson
JB J. Brown
JH J. Holiday
JS J. Springer
JT J. Tatum
JW J. Walsh
KP K. Porziņģis
LK L. Kornet
NQ N. Queta
PP P. Pritchard
PO Porzingis
XT X. Tillman
HOU/BOS the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Thompson hits game-winning shot and scores 33 points as Rockets rally past Celtics 114-112
BOSTON -- — Amen Thompson hit a game-winning floater with 0.7 seconds left and finished with 33 points to lead the Houston Rockets to a 114-112 victory over the Boston Celtics on Monday night.
Dillon Brooks shot 10 of 15 from 3-point range and led Houston with 36 points. The Rockets won for the ninth time in 11 games.
Jaylen Brown had 28 points for the Celtics, and Jayson Tatum added 19 after a scoreless first half. Luke Kornet had 18 and Kristaps Porzingis scored 17 to go with eight rebounds.
Rockets leading scorer Jalen Green was held to 12 points.
Thompson broke free off an inbounds play and went in for an easy dunk, pushing Houston in front 112-110. But after a timeout, Tatum got the ball near midcourt and drove in for the tying layup with 5.3 seconds left.
Brooks’ 10th 3-pointer gave the Rockets a 108-106 lead with 1:39 to play.
The Celtics easily won the first meeting between the teams in Houston on Jan. 3.
Houston coach Ime Udoka said before the game that forward Cam Whitmore was “sick and back at the hotel.”
Takeaways Rockets: Coming off their second win over East-leading Cleveland in a week , the surprising Rockets rallied after falling behind by 12 early in the final quarter.
Celtics: With center Al Horford a very late scratch after going through warmups, Derrick White (bruised right shin) and Sam Hauser (right hip) all out, coach Joe Mazzulla mixed and matched some unusual lineups by going deep into the bench.
Key moment Thompson took the ball just outside the 3-point line, drove and hit his winning shot over Brown.
Key stat Tatum missed all five shot attempts in the opening half.
Up next The Rockets are at the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday, the third stop on a four-game trip. The Celtics host the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday.