The Rockets almost ended their 4 game losing streak against the Jazz on Friday as they were pushed to overtime at home. After being up 86-78 with almost 4 minutes to go, they only managed to eek out 3 more points the rest of the way on free throws. This is likely to lead to two possibilities depending on how the Rockets interpret the loss. If they take from it the feeling of being in the lead for most of the game, and that next time they'll finish things right, they're going to beat the Celtics in Boston on Monday. If they take from it the disappointment of giving up that lead in the final minutes, they will get completely crushed by a Boston team that just took a beating from Derrick Rose and the Bulls.
The Celtics have been going through some ups and downs lately for a number of reasons, so they're beatable. It could be easy for the Celtics to overlook the Rockets at this moment since they're beginning a 6 game home streak against the likes of Houston, Sacramento, and Charlotte (37-67 combined). Rondo took more shots Saturday than any other game since his return (14) and had "just" 8 assists. Look for him to get his teammates into the game more (12-15 assists).
If you want to try to pick an upset, this has a good chance of going down. After getting a taste of potential victory, the Rockets should be hungry to go for the kill against the favored Celtics.
Update: nailed it. 108-102 Houston wins. Rondo 12 assists, 8 shots.
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