The Boston Celtics lost to the Houston Rockets Monday night, giving Houston just its 16th win of the 2022 NBA season.
Entering the game with a record of 15-52, the Rockets owned the worst record in the NBA, facing a Celtics team with the second-best record in the league.
And Boston fell flat on its face.
Despite a 43-point performance from All-Star Jaylen Brown, the Celtics failed to complete a late comeback, losing 111-109.
After the game, Brown did not shy away from pointing his finger at Boston’s lack of energy as the reason for the loss.
"We lost tonight not really on execution, but lack of effort," Brown said. "Not doing our job. The hard stuff, the little stuff is what adds up. The offensive rebounds, the loose balls, the turnovers.
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"We didn't deserve to win today."
Boston had a chance to send the game into overtime, but Jayson Tatum missed a layup with one second left in the fourth quarter, sending the Celtics to its fifth loss in eight games.
"I thought it was a good, well-executed play," Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. "Just couldn't make a tough layup."
Tatum, who struggled from the field – shooting 8 of 22 – echoed Brown’s thoughts, saying the effort was lacking from the tip.
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"It wasn’t great. We picked it up kind of too late," Tatum told reporters when asked for his thoughts on Bostons' effort. "And I’ll take the blame for that. I didn’t necessarily start the best and I feel like that kind of spread throughout the team. So, I have to be better starting the game, just from an energy level. Being active out there."
The Celtics continue their six-game road trip in Minnesota on Wednesday.
