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Goodell Welcomed Swiftie Effect

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LAS VEGAS – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has attended two Taylor Swift concerts with his two daughters and his wife, but chances are, he never thought his status as a “Swiftie” would bleed over into the workplace.

But it has.

Swift has taken the NFL world by storm due to her relationship with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, and Goodell had nothing but good things to say on Monday about the couple’s impact on football.

“Having the ‘Taylor Swift effect’ is also a positive,” Goodell told reporters. “Both Travis and Taylor are wonderful young people, and they seem very happy. She knows great entertainment, and I think that’s why she loves NFL football.

“Obviously, it creates a buzz. It creates another group of young fans, particularly young women, that are interested in seeing why she is going to this game, why she is interested in this game. Besides (her relationship with) Travis, she is a football fan, and I think that’s great for us.”

Kansas City beat the Baltimore Ravens 17-10 in the AFC Championship Game on Jan. 28, leading some fans to believe that the outcome was pre-planned in order to have Swift draw more viewers for the Super Bowl. The 14-time Grammy Award winner is expected to be in attendance when the Chiefs take on the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, but Goodell made it clear that he is far from capable of cooking up such a storyline.

“I don’t think I’m that good of a scripter — or anybody on our staff,” Goodell said. “Listen, there is no way I could have scripted that one, let’s put it that way.”

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Swift has been spotted at 12 of Kelce’s games this season, with Kansas City coming out on top in nine of them. She first attended the Chiefs’ 41-10 victory over the Chicago Bears back on Sept. 24.

Of course, there has been some backlash from the NFL’s focus on Swift over the past five months, but Goodell is hoping that she sticks around.

“I think anybody in this society, when they’re in a public position, (is) going to be subject to criticism,” Goodell said. “Taylor is obviously a dynamo. Everything she touches, there are people following. So we count ourselves fortunate and we welcome it.”

–Field Level Media

Super Bowl LVIII: Line Dancing for KC

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LAS VEGAS – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Heavy early money backing the Kansas City Chiefs led to multiple changes in the betting line within 24 hours of the matchup for Super Bowl LVIII being set.

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The San Francisco 49ers opened as 2.0-point favorites shortly after storming from behind to beat the Detroit Lions in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday night. However, the line dipped as low as 1.0 points at sportsbooks including DraftKings and BetMGM, where the Chiefs had been backed by 78 percent of the spread-line money as of Monday morning.

The line has since shifted back to San Francisco being favored by 1.5 points at both sportsbooks, who both have the Over/Under points total at 47.5 points. The early money at BetMGM has the Over being backed by 90 percent of the money wagered on the market.

Sportsbooks were widely pulling for the Lions to upset the 49ers, who are the biggest Super Bowl liability at many sportsbooks, and that remains the case ahead of facing the Chiefs.

“Even though early action is on the Chiefs as underdogs, the sportsbook is cheering for a Kansas City victory,” BetMGM senior trading manager Tristan David said.

Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is the early favorite to claim his third Super Bowl MVP award. The MVP of Super Bowls LIV and LVII, Mahomes is +120 to claim No. 3 at BetMGM, where he opened the season at +1000. 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy is second at +220, followed by teammate Christian McCaffrey at +450.

Mahomes has drawn 20 percent of the MVP money at DraftKings, where he is also +120. Teammate Travis Kelce has far longer odds at +1200, but the tight end has been the second most popular early pick with 14 percent of the money backing him.

The most popular player prop at DraftKings has been McCaffrey at -155 to lead all players in combined rushing and receiving yards. He has also been the most popular Anytime Touchdown play despite -215 odds.

–Field Level Media

Super Teams, Super Bowl, Super Prices

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LAS VEGAS – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – With the NFL’s title game in Las Vegas for the first time, combined with the Taylor Swift effect on the Kansas City Chiefs’ side and the San Francisco 49ers’ West Coast fandom, ticket prices are a record level for Super Bowl LVIII.

According to ticket aggregator TicketIQ, the average secondary ticket market list pricing for the Feb. 11 game at Allegiant Stadium has reached a record $10,752. Tickets for Super Bowl LV in Tampa, Fla., went for a higher number but the pandemic limited capacity to just 25,000.

Average prices for Super Bowl LVIII were at a record $9,815 on online marketplace TickPick, an increase of 70 percent over last year’s title game, Front Office Sports reported.

Making their fourth Super Bowl appearance in five seasons, the Chiefs have been a popular team for years. Support for the Chiefs has been bolstered by Swift’s relationship with star tight end Travis Kelce, which has the pop star’s fans swooning from coast to coast.

The 49ers, who are aiming to join the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers with the most Super Bowl wins (six), are highly popular on social media. It also doesn’t hurt that San Francisco is loaded with offensive stars — Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and Brock Purdy.

Wrapping it all up is the fact that Las Vegas, a destination for millions of partygoers, is hosting the country’s largest single sporting event.

“This is probably one of the lower-impact (potential) matchups, actually, and demand is still up,” TicketIQ founder and CEO Jesse Lawrence told Front Office Sports. “All bets are off for where this goes over the next two weeks, but I do think team demand is less of a factor this year, and the Vegas location is definitely helping drive this.”

Just to get into this Super Bowl, it’ll cost fans more than $7,000, one of the highest non-COVID figures for the annual event.

However, had the Detroit Lions prevailed over the 49ers in the NFC title game, the ticket prices likely would’ve skyrocketed even further. The Lions, who have never played in the Super Bowl, won their first playoff game in 32 years and won two postseason games for the first time since 1957.

“The Lions’ demand for this would have been through the roof,” Lawrence said.

–Field Level Media

 

Super Bowl LVIII: KC vs SF in a Rematch

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LAS VEGAS – (Staff and Wire Services Report) – There’s no need to check your eyes if Super Bowl LVIII has a familiar look. Just four years after the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers met in the big game, the two foes are back for a rematch in the Super Bowl on Feb. 11 in Vegas.

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San Francisco took a 10-point lead into the fourth quarter of that matchup on Feb. 2, 2020, in Miami Gardens, Fla., before the Chiefs scored 21 points to claim a 31-20 victory.

Kansas City also won last season’s Super Bowl, 38-35 over the Philadelphia Eagles. The franchise is 3-2 in Super Bowls, the first win coming in Super Bowl IV to cap the 1969 season.

The Chiefs qualified for this year’s game with Sunday’s 17-10 road victory over the Baltimore Ravens. Now they will look to become the first franchise to repeat as Super Bowl champions since the New England Patriots (2003 and 2004 seasons).

“Now we’re in the Super Bowl and the job’s not done,” Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes said. “We got to go out there to Vegas and play a great team and see if we can go out there and get the Super Bowl.”

Mahomes, a two-time Super Bowl MVP, will be making his fourth Super Bowl start. The only quarterbacks to start more are legends Tom Brady (10) and John Elway (five).

Chiefs coach Andy Reid will be coaching in his fifth Super Bowl, tied for third most with former Dallas Cowboys legend Tom Landry. Bill Belichick (nine) and Don Shula (six) are the only two to coach in more.

Meanwhile, the 49ers have been knocking on the championship door during Kyle Shanahan’s coaching tenure.

The loss to the Chiefs was the only time San Francisco made it to the Super Bowl under Shanahan. But the lead got away — just like it did when the Atlanta Falcons blew a 25-point lead when Shanahan was offensive coordinator for an epic meltdown in Super Bowl LI.

The 49ers were the top seed in the NFC this season and reached the Super Bowl with Sunday’s 34-31 comeback win over the Detroit Lions in the conference championship.

The feeling is that it is time for this version of the 49ers to win the franchise’s sixth Super Bowl title, and first since the 1994 season.

“There’s been unfinished business for a while,” Shanahan said after the win over the Lions. “Our team has been set up for this for a long time. It’s been a long year to get to this point.”

While the Chiefs possess arguably the best quarterback in the game in Mahomes and his 14-3 career postseason record, the 49ers have seen Brock Purdy go from Mr. Irrelevant as the last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft to one of the most relevant signal-callers in the game.

Purdy (24 years, 46 days) will be the third-youngest quarterback to start a Super Bowl and has given San Francisco stability at the position.

Jimmy Garoppolo was the starter when the 49ers lost to the Chiefs four years ago, and the organization thought it would be better served using the No. 3 overall pick in 2021 on Trey Lance. That decision turned out to be a colossal blunder, but Purdy saved the day with his emergence and is already a bona fide star.

Both teams have star tight ends (Travis Kelce for the Chiefs, George Kittle for the 49ers) and an upper-echelon pass rusher (Chris Jones for the Chiefs, Nick Bosa for the 49ers).

San Francisco’s Christian McCaffrey is one of the NFL’s top all-around running backs, while few backs run harder than Kansas City’s Isiah Pacheco.

Both teams have celebrity fans who can’t wait to hit the Las Vegas Strip while using their best moves and distractions to avoid the crush of paparazzi. But only one of these teams (the Chiefs) has Taylor Swift cheering for them.

But it won’t turn into “Swift Week” leading up to the big game, as Kelce’s girlfriend won’t be anywhere near Vegas until the eve of the contest. She will be serenading Kelce with “You Belong With Me” from Tokyo with four straight concerts scheduled from Feb 7-10.

So, let the Super Bowl hype begin.

–Field Level Media

Patriots to Promote Covington

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FOXBOROUGH – (Wire Service Report) – The New England Patriots will promote defensive line coach DeMarcus Covington to defensive coordinator, according to multiple media reports Saturday.

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Covington, 34, would be the first staff hire for new head coach Jerod Mayo, who recently was promoted as an assistant to replace longtime head coach Bill Belichick.

The Patriots hired Covington as an assistant in 2017 and he moved up to defensive line coach in 2020.

Belichick often called the defensive plays, with the last defensive coordinator title held by Matt Patricia in 2017.

–Field Level Media

Beltre, Mauer, Helton – Hall of Famers

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COOPERSTOWN – (Staff and Wire Services) – Adrian Beltre, Joe Mauer and Todd Helton became the newest members of the Baseball Hall of Fame Tuesday night, when results of the balloting conducted by voting members of the Baseball Writers Association of America was announced by president Josh Rawitch at the plaque gallery inside the museum.

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Beltre, a star third baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers from 1998-2018, earned a resounding 95.1 percent of the vote in his first year on the ballot.

Fellow first-ballot inductee Mauer, who played his entire career for his hometown Minnesota Twins from 2004-18, garnered 76.1 percent. His 293 votes were four more than the minimum needed to reach the 75 percent necessary for enshrinement.

Helton, a slugging first baseman who spent his 17-season career with the Colorado Rockies from 1997-2013, received 79.7 percent of the vote in his sixth season of eligibility.

Beltre, Mauer and Helton will be inducted along with former manager Jim Leyland — who was elected via the 16-member Contemporary Baseball Era Committee on Dec. 3 — in a ceremony scheduled for July 21 in Cooperstown.

Beltre and Mauer are the first pair of first-ballot inductees since Mariano Rivera and the late Roy Halladay were enshrined in 2019. The three-person class elected by the writers is also the largest since 2019, when Mike Mussina and Edgar Martinez were also elected.

Billy Wagner just missed with 73.8 percent of the vote in his penultimate season of eligibility. Gary Sheffield, in his 10th and final year on the ballot, finished at 63.9 percent.

Carlos Beltran, in his second year on the ballot, received 57.1 percent of the vote — up from 46.5 percent last year, when many believed he was being punished for his role in the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal. Chase Utley (28.8 percent) led the remaining debut candidates.

Beltre, the only third baseman to finish with at least 400 homers and 3,000 hits, is sure to wear a Rangers hat on his plaque after he concluded his career with an impressive eight-year stint in Arlington, Texas, that solidified his first-ballot status. While with Texas, he made three All-Star teams, won three Gold Gloves and finished in the top 10 in the American League MVP balloting four times while hitting .304 with 199 homers and 1,277 hits.

Beltre finished his 21-year MLB career as a .286 batter with 477 homers, 1,707 RBIs, 3,166 hits and 848 walks.

Mauer played all 15 seasons with the Twins and built his Hall of Fame case while spending his first 10 seasons behind the plate. The native of nearby St. Paul won three batting titles and three Gold Gloves as well as the AL MVP in 2009, when he set career highs with a .365 average, 28 homers and 96 RBIs. Mauer spent his final five seasons at first base following a series of concussions.

Another one-team icon, Helton earned induction on his sixth year on the ballot and will become the second Colorado Rockies player in the Hall of Fame, joining former teammate Larry Walker in Cooperstown. Helton batted above .300 in his first 10 full MLB seasons and finished his career with a .316 average along with 369 homers. He led the NL with a .372 average and 147 RBIs in 2000.

Wagner’s 422 saves rank sixth all-time. The diminutive left-hander made seven All-Star teams and averaged 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings, the highest figure ever among pitchers to throw at least 900 innings.

Sheffield, a slugger known for his bat waggle and ferocious yet controlled swing, hit 509 homers and finished in the top 10 of the MVP balloting six times for five different teams.

Andruw Jones, a defensive whiz as well as a potent batter, received 61.6 percent on his seventh year on the ballot.

–By Jerry Beach, Field Level Media

Sports Law: Porter Reaches Plea Deal

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NEW YORK – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Former Houston Rockets guard Kevin Porter Jr. reached a plea deal Tuesday in his New York assault case involving former girlfriend and WNBA guard Kysre Gondrezick.

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Porter, 23, pleaded guilty in a Manhattan court to charges of reckless assault in the third degree and harassment in the second degree.

According to his attorneys, he will be able to withdraw the plea following the completion of a 26-week counseling program.

Porter was arrested at a New York City hotel on Sept. 11 after police initially said he fractured one of Gondrezick’s neck vertebrae in an alleged attack. Prosecutors later dropped one of his assault charges after finding insufficient evidence that Porter injured her neck.

Gondrezick told the New York Post in October that Porter “didn’t hit me.”

“The resolution will allow Mr. Porter to put this incident, which involved false felony allegations and false facts, behind him with no criminal record and move forward,” Porter’s lawyers said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Rockets traded Porter to Oklahoma City on Oct. 17 and the Thunder waived him the next day.

Porter averaged 19.2 points, 5.7 assists and 5.3 rebounds in 59 games (all starts) for the Rockets in 2022-23.

The 2019 first-round draft pick has career averages of 15.3 points, 5.0 assists and 4.3 rebounds in 196 games (146 starts) with the Cleveland Cavaliers (2019-20) and Rockets.

–Field Level Media

NBA: Embiid, Towns Score 70, 62

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PHILADELPHIA – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Philadelphia center Joel Embiid scored a career-high and franchise-record 70 points to go along with 18 rebounds as the host 76ers defeated the San Antonio Spurs 133-123 on Monday.

Embiid, the reigning Most Valuable Player, became the third player in Philadelphia franchise history to produce at least 60 points in a game, joining Wilt Chamberlain (three occasions) and Allen Iverson.

Embiid surpassed Chamberlain’s previous franchise mark of 68 points, set on Dec. 16, 1967, at the Chicago Bulls. (Chamberlain had his 100-point game as a member of the Philadelphia Warriors, now the Golden State Warriors franc hise).

Prized No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama scored 33 points for the Spurs. Devin Vassell added 22, Jeremy Sochan contributed 14, Doug McDermott had 13 and Julian Champagnie and Tre Jones each finished with 12.

Hornets 128, Timberwolves 125

Miles Bridges scored 28 points, Brandon Miller finished with 27 and Charlotte overcame a record-setting performance by Karl-Anthony Towns to rally past Minnesota in Minneapolis.

Towns scored 62 points to break his own franchise record for the Timberwolves. But he missed his final 3-point attempt in the final second of regulation, failing to force overtime.

Charlotte trailed by 15 points at the start of the fourth quarter. The Hornets outscored the Timberwolves 36-18 in the final period to earn their 10th win of the season.

Suns 115, Bulls 113

Kevin Durant knocked down a tie-breaking 17-footer with 1.6 seconds left to give Phoenix a victory over visiting Chicago.

Durant scored a season-high 43 points to reach 40 for the second straight game as the Suns won their sixth consecutive game. Bradley Beal scored 18 points for Phoenix, and Devin Booker added 16.

DeMar DeRozan missed a contested 3-point attempt as time expired, leaving the Bulls with their ninth straight head-to-head loss against Phoenix. Coby White had 26 points, matched his career high of 10 rebounds and had nine assists while DeRozan scored 21 points for Chicago.

Bucks 122, Pistons 113

Giannis Antetokounmpo notched a triple-double with 31 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists and visiting Milwaukee defeated Detroit for the second time in three days.

Khris Middleton had 26 points and Damian Lillard, who tossed in a season-high 45 points in the Bucks’ 141-135 win on Saturday, added 17 points and eight assists. Milwaukee has won 21 of the past 22 regular-season meetings with the Pistons, including the past nine matchups.

Marcus Sasser led Detroit with 23 points. Isaiah Stewart had 19 points, eight rebounds and five blocks, while Jaden Ivey added 17 points.

Cavaliers 126, Magic 99

Jarrett Allen set a franchise record with his 12th consecutive double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, as Cleveland rolled to a road blowout of Orlando.

Allen surpassing Elmore Smith and Andre Drummond — with whom Allen was tied with for the Cavaliers’ double-double mark coming into the night — provided the only drama of the second half in a wire-to-wire, lopsided affair.

Paolo Banchero led Orlando with 18 points and six assists. Franz Wagner, playing his second consecutive game since returning from an ankle sprain that sidelined him the previous eight, scored 17 points.

Grizzlies 108, Raptors 100

Jaren Jackson Jr. had 27 points and six steals and visiting Memphis defeated Toronto.

Luke Kennard added 19 points for the Grizzlies, who had lost their previous two games. Vince Williams Jr. supplied 18 points and 10 rebounds.

Scottie Barnes had 22 points, 12 rebounds and six blocked shots for the Raptors, who have lost three straight. RJ Barrett recorded 29 points and nine rebounds.

Celtics 119, Mavericks 110

Jayson Tatum tossed in a game-high 39 points and collected 11 rebounds to help Boston win at Dallas.

Tatum shot 11 of 21 from the field as the Celtics won for the fifth time in six games. Jaylen Brown added 34 points for the Celtics, who received 17 points from Jrue Holiday.

Luka Doncic led the Mavericks with 33 points, a season-high 18 rebounds and 13 assists. Kyrie Irving scored 23 points and Tim Hardaway Jr. had 20 for Dallas, which took its third loss in four games.

Kings 122, Hawks 107

Harrison Barnes scored 32 points and Sacramento took advantage of the absence of Trae Young (concussion protocol) to thump visiting Atlanta.

Domantas Sabonis contributed a game-high 21 rebounds, 14 points, six assists and two steals to the win, which allowed the Kings to snap a four-game losing streak.

Dejounte Murray had a game-high 35 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Hawks, who were held to their sixth-lowest point total of the season. Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 18 points.

–Field Level Media

Filed Under: NBA

Well Rested Mavericks Await Celtics

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DALLAS – (Staff and wire Service Report) – It’ll be a well-rested Dallas Mavericks team that takes the floor against the visiting Boston Celtics on Monday night.

Dallas hasn’t played since dropping a 127-110 decision to the Los Angeles Lakers on the road on Wednesday night. The Mavericks were scheduled to play at Golden State on Friday, but that game was postponed following the death of Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojevic.

Boston, meanwhile, will be playing its second game in as many nights. Despite a lackluster second half, the Celtics won 116-107 at Houston on Sunday. The Celtics led 70-55 at halftime but were limited to 46 points in the second half (20 in the third quarter).

Former Maverick Kristaps Porzingis led Boston with 32 points, six rebounds and five blocked shots. Derrick White added 21 points and 11 rebounds, and Jaylen Brown finished with a triple-double (13 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists).

Boston, which boasts the NBA’s best record (33-10), shot 43.9 percent from the field (43 of 98).

“I think that’s the recipe and something that we took from last year is when we’re not shooting well, can we have a different switch attack?” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said after the Houston game. “Which is what Kristaps is able to bring us in the post and how do we fight for extra possessions, which is our offensive rebounding and our crashing. It’s something that we stress this year.”

Guard Jrue Holiday (sprained right elbow) and center Al Horford (rest) didn’t play in Boston’s victory over the Rockets. Horford typically doesn’t play in both games of back-to-backs.

Luka Doncic was back in the Dallas lineup for the loss to the Lakers after he missed three games with a sprained right ankle. Doncic scored 33 points, collected 13 rebounds and had 10 assists.

Doncic shot 12 of 24 from the floor but was just 2 of 9 from 3-point territory. He leads the Mavericks in points (33.6), rebounds (8.3) and assists (9.2) per game.

“First game back was tough with the legs,” Doncic said. “I thought a lot of threes were going in and they didn’t.”

Dallas trailed by two at halftime but was outscored 42-27 in the third quarter. The Mavericks were 11 of 40 on 3-point attempts.

“Some shots didn’t fall,” Dallas center Dereck Lively II said. “There were some times where we came down the court, and we just weren’t moving the ball well. We were just kind of getting up jumpers instead of trying to get into the offense and trying to move the ball around so we could get a better look.”

Most of the misses came from the Mavericks’ top scorers, as Doncic, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Kyrie Irving were a combined 3 of 21 from behind the arc.

“We generated a lot of wide-open looks and they didn’t drop for us,” Dallas coach Jason Kidd said. “They made it a point to have pace and took advantage of the misses. When you miss open shots against a team like that, they are going to make you pay.”

Monday’s game is the first of two meetings this season between the Celtics and Mavericks. The teams will also play in Boston on March 1.

–Field Level Media

Celtics, Porzingis Dispatch Rockets

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HOUSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Kristaps Porzingis scored a game-high 32 points while Jaylen Brown added a triple-double as the visiting Boston Celtics outlasted the short-handed Houston Rockets 116-107 on Sunday.

Porzingis finished 6-for-11 from behind the arc as the Celtics went 17-for-47 from deep as a team. Brown had 13 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists and Derrick White finished with 21 points and 12 boards for Boston, which was without Jrue Holiday (elbow) and Al Horford (rest).

The Rockets were without starters Fred VanVleet (back) and Jabari Smith Jr. (ankle). Rookies Amen Thompson, who had career highs of 15 points and 14 rebounds, and Cam Whitmore were inserted into the starting lineup, and the Rockets produced a valiant effort, closing within 93-90 when Dillon Brooks (25 points) scored with 9:13 to play.

But Whitmore missed two free throws and Porzingis answered with a midrange jumper before Payton Pritchard nailed a corner 3-pointer that enabled the Celtics to reclaim control for good.

Alperen Sengun notched a triple-double for Houston with 24 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists.

Houston, having trailed by 17 points in the first half, pulled within 85-80 when Aaron Holiday buried a 3-pointer with 2:25 left in the third quarter. But the Celtics extended their lead back to double digits entering the fourth when Brown sank a floater and White drilled a step-back 3-pointer with 31.9 seconds left in the third.

Back-to-back Porzingis threes provided the Celtics with their first double-digit lead at 18-8 with 5:52 remaining in the first quarter.

Porzingis tallied 15 points in the first period to help Boston grab a 35-25 advantage, but Houston kept clawing despite its short-handed rotation. Jalen Green followed his circus layup with another bucket in the paint to pull the Rockets within 44-39 with 7:39 remaining in the second quarter.

But the Celtics surged to a 17-point lead behind triples from Pritchard, Sam Hauser and Porzingis. White, meanwhile, scored in the paint four times down the stretch of the first half, and his 12-foot floater with 2.4 seconds left extended the Boston lead to 70-55 at intermission.

Porzingis and White combined for 36 first-half points, and Boston did additional damage on the offensive glass by converting nine offensive rebounds into 19 second-chance points.

–Field Level Media