STAR PERFORMANCE
Thompson hits game-winning shot as Rockets rally past Celtics
Jan 27, 2025, 9:38 pm
Rockets beat the Celtics, 114-112. Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images.
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.
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The Astros know how to win these games, and it shows
Jun 29, 2025, 4:28 pm
Kyle Tucker launched a three-run homer and matched a season high with four hits against the team that traded him in December, and the Chicago Cubs routed Houston 12-3 on Saturday night to stop the Astros' five-game winning streak.
Tucker also scored four times to pace a Cubs lineup that pounded out 15 hits, including three by Dansby Swanson. Seiya Suzuki, Michael Busch and Nico Hoerner also went deep.
Chicago hit three homers in an inning for the second time this season during a seven-run fourth. Busch and Hoerner had back-to-back solo shots to put the Cubs on top 3-2, and Tucker’s drive made it 7-2.
The offensive outburst came in support of Colin Rea (5-3), who allowed two runs and five hits over five innings. The only blemish on his line was rookie Cam Smith’s two-run homer in the third, which briefly gave the Astros a 2-1 lead.
Smith, part of the package Houston received for Tucker, finished with two hits and has homered in consecutive games for the first time in his career.
Lance McCullers Jr. (1-3) came off the injured list and allowed eight runs on seven hits over 3 1/3 innings.
Isaac Paredes, also part of the Astros' trade return for Tucker, hit his 17th home run.
Key moment
Tucker’s three-run homer in the fourth that put the Cubs ahead 7-2.
Key stat
McCullers has a 10.89 ERA in five home starts this season, but hasn’t allowed an earned run in three road starts.
Up next
Houston LHP Framber Valdez (8-4, 2.88 ERA) opposes RHP Jameson Taillon (7-5, 4.77 ERA) when the series concludes Sunday.