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Boston 89, Houston 101 - Final

How the Houston Rockets bested the Boston Celtics:

Bench

The Houston Rockets bench came up huge against the Celtics. It was short, with only four players seeing time, but all of them had enormous games that helped the Rockets get the win.

Greg Morris had the best game of any player, starter or reserve. The second-year player posted 20 points on 8-of-9 shooting. He also got to the line six times. Defensively he was also solid, grabbing six rebounds and blocking three shots.

Toney Douglas had an enormous finish to the game. What was an average night for the backup point guard turned into an extraordinary performance in the fourth quarter. Douglas scored eight of his 11 points in the final frame. In the closing minutes, he slammed the door on the Celtics by drilling a three and immediately completing a three-point play on the next possession.

Carlos Delfino bounced back from a rough stretch of games with some hot outside shooting. Delfino connected on 3-of-5 from beyond the arc for nine points. Marcus Morris grabbed seven rebounds in 16 minutes off the bench.

Openings and Pace

The opening of the game was very heavily in the Houston Rockets' corner. They raced out to a fast start and were blowing by the Celtics in transition. The same went for the opening of the second half.

The Rockets scored 25 fast break points in the game and the majority of those came at the start of each half.

The Celtics appeared groggy to start the game and then fell asleep with a lead after halftime. The Rockets outscored the Celtics by 16 points in the first and third quarters combined. They had 20 point on the board in the third quarter before you could blink.

The pace favored the Rockets all night and it became evident early that the only way they would lose would be by their own doing. Houston went through droughts where they refused to look for the best shot. They instead took the first available shot, but against Boston that wound up working out.

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Chandler Parsons

A game in which Jeremy Lin and James Harden were a combined 8-of-23 from the field, it was going to take a superior effort from someone else for a Rocket win. 

Chandler Parsons was up to that task. It is hard to have an enormous effect on a basketball game while taking only seven shots. It is something Rajon Rondo has mastered, but Parsons stole that stage Friday night. He posted 15 points, eight assists and nine rebounds.

He was able to get to the line six times and hold Paul Pierce to 5-of-18 shooting. It was a fantastic performance all-around for Parsons. He affected the pace of the game with his rebounding and distribution in transition. He had a hand in almost everything that took place in the game, which is evident in his plus-23 mark on the evening. That was by-far the best ranking in the game.

Boston 89, Houston 101 - Final

Houston Rockets Boxscore courtesy of NBA.com.

Boston 89, Houston 101 - Final

Boston Celtics Final Boxscore:

Boxscore courtesy of NBA.com. 

Boston 89, Houston 101 - Final

Boston Celtics Boxscore courtesy of NBA.com

Boston 89, Houston 101 - Final

Houston Rockets Plus/Minus

Jeremy Lin: +6

James Harden: +16

Chandler Parsons: +23

Patrick Patterson: +16

Omer Asik: +13

Greg Smith: -1

Marcus Morris: -12

Carlos Delfino: -4

Toney Douglas: +3

Boston 89, Houston 101 - Final

Boston Celtics Plus/Minus

Rajon Rondo: -12

Paul Pierce: -16

Courtney Lee: -19

Brandon Bass: -23

Kevin Garnett: -9

Jason Terry: +4

Jeff Green: +2

Chris Wilcox: +6

Jared Sullinger: +4

Leandro Barbosa: +3

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Boston 89, Houston 101 - Final

This is going to be a huge win for the Houston Rockets. They were going through a very poor stretch, but will have now won two straight to get back to .500 on the season.

This game has added benefits, as it was their defense that gave them the advantage. The Rockets out-rebounded the Celtics 45-40 and held Boston to 38.6 percent shooting from the floor.

Stay tuned to Bleacher Report for postgame stats and analysis.

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Boston 85, Houston 99 - 1:40 Remaining in Fourth Quarter

Toney Douglas continues to show why he is the late-game option ahead of Jeremy Lin right now. 

Douglas has scored six straight points and has eight in the fourth quarter. He is single-handidly putting the Celtics away on the offensive end right now.

Boston 85, Houston 96 - 2:40 Remaining in Fourth Quarter

Time is running out for the Celtics in this one. The game is just moving too fast for them right now. Some big three pointers have really started nailing in the coffin for the Rockets.

Toney Douglas' second trey of the evening was Houston's 10th. The Celtics were coming off a solid defensive stand with a chance to cut the deficit to just five. A Chandler Parsons steal gave Douglas a wide-open attempt.

Scott Halleran/Getty Images

Boston 83, Houston 91 - 4:20 Remaining in Fourth Quarter

An odd night thus far as the Rockets have been in control for the most part tonight without the aid of their two stars. 

Jeremy Lin is not having a good night tonight, nor is James Harden.

The duo is shooting a combined 8-of-21 from the field and 3-of-9 from beyond the arc. This is not a great night for the Rockets' starting backcourt. 

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Boston 78, Houston 86 - 6:20 Remaining in Fourth Quarter

Carlos Delfino deserves some individual recognition as his third three stops a Celtics' run. Delfino is now 3-of-4 from beyond the arc for nine points.

According to Howard Chen of CSN Houston, there is some added significance to this performance.

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Great to see Delfino bounce back tonight. Had been on a 6-28 slump. #Rockets #RedNation

— Howard Chen (@ho_chenCSN) December 15, 2012

Boston 78, Houston 86 - 7:20 Remaining in Fourth Quarter

Greg Smith, playing in just his 25th NBA game tonight, leads all scorers with 20 points. That is one point shy of his career-high 21. Smith is shooting 8-of-9 on the night and 4-of-6 from the charity stripe. 

Nick Laham/Getty Images

Boston 72, Houston 81 - 9:56 Remaining in Fourth Quarter

Jared Sullinger finally made his presence felt at the end of the third quarter. Believe it or not, he is the only first rounder from the 2012 NBA draft playing in tonight's game. Between the two teams, five players were drafted in the first round.

Jeremy Lamb was part of the James Harden trade and is on Oklahoma City.

Terrence Jones is playing with Houston's D-League affiliate.

Fab Melo is playing with Boston's D-League affiliate.

Royce White's future is entirely up in the air as he continues to be at odds with the Rockets' front office over the struggles of his mental disorder and the NBA travel schedule.

Jared Sullinger, the second-to-last player of the bunch taken is the only one playing tonight. He has three points and four rebounds.

Boston 70, Houston 75 - End of Third Quarter

Despite the massive third quarter for the Rockets, it is Boston who scores the final four of the frame.

The Celtics lost that quarter pretty badly, but enter the final period only trailing by five. 

Rajon Rondo has come on strong with 13 points and 11 assists. Paul Pierce still leads the team with 14 points, but only had two in the third.

James Harden had a strong quarter and now has 16 points to lead all scorers. Greg Smith has 14 off the bench and Chandler Parsons has 13. 

Boston 68, Houston 75 - :40 Remaining in Third Quarter

Carlos Delfino's trey gives the Rockets 32 points in the third quarter.

Houston has outscored the Celtics by ten in the quarter.

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Boston 62, Houston 68 - 2:40 Remaining in Third Quarter

Greg Smith now has 14 points off the bench on 6-of-7 shooting.

Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle likes what he sees out of the second-year player:

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Greg Smith caught consecutive bolts sent inside with 1 hand just because he can. Never see 1st basemen stick other hand in there either.

— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) December 15, 2012

This is getting close to his career-high of 21 in a win over the Lakers earlier this season.

Boston 62, Houston 67 - 3:30 Remaining in Third Quarter

Jason Terry has shifted back to his reserve role pretty flawlessly tonight. He just hit his third three pointer of the night, giving him nine points in 13 minutes.

With Avery Bradley returning some time in the next few weeks, this will give Terry a handful of games to adjust back into his former role.

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Boston 56, Houston 63 - 5:30 Remaining in Third Quarter

The second half is starting very much like the first half. 

The Houston Rockets have come out like a bullet, flying around the court. They've scored 20 points in the first six minutes of the third quarter, to just nine for Boston, and turned the game on it's head.

Chandler Parsons and James Harden have combined for 13 of those 20 points.

Boston 47, Houston 55 - 8:18 Remaining in Third Quarter

Boston has done a great job thus far keeping the ball out of James Hardens hands.

They can survive with him only posting 12-15 shots tonight. He has jumped out in the second half with five quick points though.

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Boston 45, Houston 43 - At Halftime

Houston Rockets Plus/Minus

Jeremy Lin: -2

James Harden: +1

Chandler Parsons: +7

Patrick Patterson: +7

Omer Asik: 0

Greg Smith: -2

Marcus Morris: -9

Carlos Delfino: -9

Toney Douglas: -3

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Boston 45, Houston 43 - At Halftime

Boston Celtics Plus/Minus

Rajon Rondo: +1

Paul Pierce: +1

Courtney Lee: -9

Brandon Bass: -7

Kevin Garnett: 0

Jason Terry: +11

Jeff Green: +7

Chris Wilcox: +2

Jared Sullinger: +3

Leandro Barbosa: +1 

Scott Halleran/Getty Images

Boston 45, Houston 43 - At Halftime

Greg Smith comes up big at the end of the first half bringing the Rockets to within two points of Boston.

Smith has a team-high 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting off the bench, to go along with six rebounds.

Paul Pierce leads all scorers with 12 points and has gotten to the line six times.

Boston 45, Houston 41 - :30 Remaining in Second Quarter

Both teams having a hard time putting the ball in the basket. The Celtics are shooting 37 percent while the Rockets stand at 41 percent.

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Boston 41, Houston 37 - 2:30 Remaining in Second Quarter

Paul Pierce has 11 points, all in the second quarter. He also has come away three steals.

Chandler Parson's layup gives him seven points to lead the Rockets. Greg Smith also has seven off the bench.

Boston 41, Houston 34 - 3:30 Remaining in Second Quarter

The downside of the Rockets' up-tempo style is being shown right now. Their shooting has dropped to 38 percent and they are forcing the ball up the court when there is nothing there.

The Rockets are sacrificing the ability to get good shots off in order to get fast shots off. It is a dangerous gameplan, but one that has them one of the top offensive teams in the league.