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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Ben DuBose

Takeaways: Cam Whitmore has career night as Celtics rout weary Rockets

Cam Whitmore Rockets Celtics Boston (Organization) Ime Udoka Houston (Organization) Dillon Brooks Alperen Sengun Amen Thompson Jackson Gatlin

On night two of a difficult road back-to-back, the Rockets quickly ran out of steam in Saturday’s 145-113 blowout loss (box score) at Boston. Houston fell to 19-19, while the Celtics (30-9) continue to hold the NBA’s best record of the 2023-24 regular season to date.

Led by Alperen Sengun (19 points, 10 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 assists), the Rockets — who won Friday in Detroit — were quite competitive until late in the second quarter. But that’s when the rested home team started to pull away on a hot-shooting night.

The Celtics shot a blistering 24-of-47 from 3-point range (51.1%) on Saturday, while Houston was 7-of-30 (23.3%). To say the least, that 51-point discrepancy was difficult to overcome. Boston is now a perfect 19-0 at home, while the Rockets are just 4-13 on the road.

Both members of Boston’s perennial All-Star duo were outstanding, with Jaylen Brown scoring 32 points on 11-of-15 shooting (73.3%) and 4-of-6 from 3-point range (66.7%). Jayson Tatum added 27 points and 8 rebounds on 9-of-17 shooting (52.9%) and 4-of-7 on 3-pointers (57.1%). Neither star had to play more than 30 minutes.

Beyond Sengun, it was a rough night for players who were leaned on heavily in Friday’s last-second win. Houston’s starting backcourt of Fred VanVleet and Jalen Green combined to score just 15 points on 5-of-15 shooting (33.3%), while Jabari Smith Jr. had 9 points on 4-of-11 shooting (36.4%) and 0-of-4 on 3-pointers.

The biggest bright spot for the Rockets was rookie wing Cam Whitmore, who had fresh legs after only playing 15 minutes Friday. The 19-year-old had a career-high 22 points and 8 rebounds while making 7-of-13 shots (53.8%) and going 6-of-8 on free throws (73.0%).

The Rockets were again short-handed, with second-year forward Tari Eason (left lower leg soreness) still sidelined. However, veteran defensive ace Dillon Brooks returned to the starting lineup after missing Houston’s past nine games with a right oblique strain. Brooks finished with 12 points and a steal in 25 minutes played.

For Rockets coach Ime Udoka, it was his first return to Boston since the improper workplace relationship that cost him his job there prior to the 2022-23 season. When asked about the incident in his pregame media session, he cited “letting people down” as a regret.

Here’s our look at highlights and postgame interviews, along with reaction by media members and fans. Houston continues its road trip Monday in Detroit (24-13), where tipoff is at 12:00 p.m. Central.

Jan. 14 Rockets-Celtics reaction

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