The Houston Rockets continued their incredible form with a thrilling 114-112 win over the defending champion Boston Celtics. The Rockets overcame a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit to sink the Celtics in Boston.
Amen, Thompson hit a game-winner with 0.7 seconds remaining to give the Rockets their third consecutive win and push their record to 10-3 this month. They are now 31-14 overall, the third-best mark in the NBA.
After trailing by as many as 12 early in the fourth quarter, the Rockets stormed back and turned the contest into a back-and-forth battle down the stretch. There were three ties and seven lead changes over the final 5:23, the last of which came on Thompson’s last-second winner.
The rising star sophomore took advantage of some confusion on the Celtics’ part to get a step on Jaylen Brown, bumped him off his spot and rattled home a push shot from 10 feet. Thompson, whose move into the starting lineup has helped fuel the Rockets’ recent burst, finished with a career-high 33 points along with 10 rebounds and four assists.
The defensive-minded guard Dillon Brooks switched it up and was unstoppable offensively he set a new career-high and tied a franchise record with 10 3-pointers and finished with 36 points – one short of his career best.
The young Rockets have now beaten the Cleveland Cavaliers (twice) and Celtics in their last three games and are the only team in the league with wins against the Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder – each conference’s respective leader. Overall, they are 18-9 against teams with a winning record.
STORY BY SALIFU ZAKARI ZEBA
