It is a clash of the number two seeds in the Eastern and Western Conferences of the NBA as the Boston Celtics and the Houston Rockets lock horns at TD Garden on Tuesday.
Both teams head into this one off the back of impressive victories in their most recent outings and will be looking to pick up where they left off last time out.
Match preview
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Wrapping up a four-game road trip with a clash against the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday, the Boston Celtics wasted no time getting themselves back to winning ways off the back of a defeat to the Los Angeles Lakers 24 hours prior.
In a repeat of the 2024 NBA finals, Joe Mazzulla's men were slow out of the blocks and trailed by four points after the opening quarter, although they did seize control of proceedings with a dominant display over the subsequent 24 minutes of action, which set the platform for a 122-107 victory.
Despite a rough shooting night that saw him go 8-22 from the field, Jayson Tatum led the way for his side in scoring with 24, but it was a solid team effort all round as all five Celtics starters combined for 104 points.
Now 32-14 across their 46 games for the campaign, the Celtics remain hot on the heels of Eastern Conference frontrunners Cleveland Cavaliers as they look to finish top of the division for the second year running.
Having beaten the Rockets 109-86 in their previous meeting earlier this year, the reigning NBA champions will now set out to complete a season sweep against their Western Conference counterparts, who have lost eight of the last nine editions of this fixture.
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The Houston Rockets emerged victorious from one of the games of the season so far as they claimed a thrilling 135-131 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers in Sunday's encounter at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.
Tallying 101 points after 36 minutes, Ime Udoka's men were on top for the opening three quarters of the contest which saw them take a significant 17-point lead and fend off the Cavaliers' late attempt at a fightback.
Amen Thompson recorded a second career triple-double as he posted 23 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists as one of four Rockets starting five members to notch 20+ points alongside Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun and Fred VanVleet.
Recovering from an underwhelming finish to 2024, the Rockets are now 9-3 over their 12 games since the turn of the year but still trail current Western Conference leaders the Oklahoma City Thunder by six victories.
Giving up just 0.1 more points per game than their next opponents, Tuesday's visitors will know they need to bring their A-game offensively to stand any chance of claiming a first win away at Boston in five years.
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Team News
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Jabari Smith Jr is currently dealing with a fractured left hand and is expected to be out of contention for the Houston Rockets over the next couple of matches.
N'Faly Dante has recently been recalled from G-League outfit Rio Grande Valley Vipers, but Tuesday's game is expected to come too soon for the center.
Derrick White put behind a rough outing against the Lakers to notch his 12th 20-point game of the campaign, and the 30-year-old is one to keep an eye on.
Having been recently named as a starter in the upcoming all-star game, Jayson Tatum will be looking to come up with the goods for his side once again.
Boston Celtics possible starting five:
Holiday, White; Tatum, Brown; Porzingis
Houston Rockets starting five:
Green, VanVleet; Brooks, Thompson; Sengun
We say: Celtics to win by 5+ points
Both teams have been equally impressive over the course of the campaign, and Tuesday's clash could easily swing either way.
That said, we just about fancy the home side to emerge triumphant in what should be a keenly contested affair.
Adepoju Marvellous
