BOSTON -- Dwight Howard did enough at the foul line to help Houston hold on Monday night. Howard had 32 points and 10 rebounds, and the Rockets beat Boston 104-92 to send the skidding Celtics to their ninth consecutive defeat. The Celtics hacked Howard, a poor free throw shooter, over and over again in the fourth quarter and sent him to the line 14 times. The big man made six and finished 10 of 18 in all. "Weve got confidence in Dwight to make those free throws when they start doing that, so I thought it was a real good win for us," teammate Chandler Parsons said. "But it wasnt perfect." As they fouled Howard repeatedly, the Celtics trimmed a 19-point deficit to seven in the fourth period before going dry in the final minutes. "I said (on TV) just now, I would probably support a change in that, that wouldnt allow that, would call it intentional or whatever you want to call it, call it like it would be called in the last 2 minutes," Boston coach Brad Stevens said. "To his credit, he made one almost -- maybe every time up to the foul line." Jeremy Lin added 16 points and nine assists for Houston. James Harden scored 16 and Parsons added 14 after missing three games with a knee injury. Parsons is having a breakout season, averaging 17.5 points (on 51.7 per cent shooting) and 5.4 rebounds. He said his knee "was really good tonight. I thought it was going to be a lot more sore." Avery Bradley had 24 points for the Celtics, on their longest losing streak since dropping a franchise-record 18 straight games in 2007 -- the season before they traded for Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to join Paul Pierce as the Big Three. "Its hard to go through," Stevens said. "Its unenjoyable to go through. But that doesnt mean theres no growth." Houston outscored Boston 65-38 in the second and third quarters. Howard had 12 third-quarter points as the Rockets expanded a 52-43 halftime lead to 84-65 by the end of the period. Jerryd Bayless scored 15 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter and Brandon Bass finished with 14 for Boston. "(Bayless) gave us a chance, just as that whole second unit did," Stevens said. "Some of those guys havent played that much." But the Celtics were unable to complete the comeback and Houston held on. "We are getting a lot of experience on that, getting a lead and then giving it up," Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. "So we are getting better at that." Houston blew a 25-point lead against the Wizards before rallying to win Saturday. "It seemed we played with more poise in the fourth quarter than we did against Washington," Lin said. Bradley had 14 first-quarter points, including two 3-pointers, as the Celtics opened a 27-19 lead and held the Rockets to 29 per cent shooting. Houstons second unit made some quick inroads against Bostons reserves in the second quarter, led by forwards Omri Casspi (12 points) and Parsons. The Rockets starters re-entered with the score tied at 35 and took off on a 17-8 run to build a 52-43 halftime lead. Jordan Crawford had 13 points for Boston. NOTES: Stevens said there is "nothing concrete" on a return date for rehabbing All-Star guard Rajon Rondo, but allowed that it would be "sooner rather than later." Speculation has ranged from Friday against the Lakers to after the All-Star break. ... The Rockets welcomed Parsons back but are still missing centre Omer Asik (bruised thigh) and guard Patrick Beverley (broken hand). ... The Rockets lost their two previous visits to Boston. ... Bass was scratched from the starting lineup in favour of Jared Sullinger. James Van Riemsdyk Jersey .J. -- The New Jersey Devils are so bad in shootouts, coach Pete DeBoer doesnt mind seeing his team take chances in the five-minute overtime. Travis Konecny Jersey . The first baseman hit a two-run homer in the top of the ninth inning to lead the Mets to a thrilling come-from-behind 3-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. http://www.officialflyersfanstore.com/authentic-radko-gudas-flyers-jersey/ . Josh Bailey had a goal and an assist as the New York Islanders earned a 2-1 win over Ottawa Wednesday, leaving the Senators five points out of a playoff spot with just five games to play and four teams ahead of them. Custom Philadelphia Flyers Jerseys . Colorado came up big against Chicago last spring, and repeated that performance Tuesday night. Varlamov stopped 36 shots and Paul Stastny had a goal and an assist for the Avalanche in a 5-1 victory over the Blackhawks. Shayne Gostisbehere Jersey . Hargreaves began his career in 2008 with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and has played with the Edmonton Eskimos and last season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. LOS ANGELES -- Blake Griffin scored 22 of his 37 points in the first quarter and made 14 of 16 shots before fouling out, and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Phoenix Suns 112-105 on Monday night for their eighth straight victory. Darren Collison scored 20 points and Chris Paul added 17 points and 11 assists for the Pacific Division leaders, who were 55.1 per cent from the field and improved to 23-1 when shooting at least 50 per cent. Goran Dragic had 23 points and five assists during a foul-plagued 33 minutes for the Suns, who slipped a half-game behind idle Memphis for the eighth and final Western Conference playoff spot and are 1 1-2 behind Dallas. Phoenix hasnt made the post-season since 2010 under coach Alvin Gentry, now a Clippers associate head coach. Gerald Green, who had a career-high 41 points for the Suns in last Thursdays 128-122 win over Oklahoma City, finished with 16 points after averaging 23.4 over his previous 13 games. Miles Plumlee, playing his second game after missing the previous two because of a sprained right knee, had 12 points and nine rebounds as all five Suns starters scored in double figures. Dragic came in averaging 20.5 points, third in the league among point guards behind Stephen Curry (23.5) and Kyrie Irving (21.5). But he picked up his third foul 2 minutes into the second quarter and wasnt a factor until the fourth, when the Suns rallied from a 19-point deficit with 8:11 remaining and got it down to 109-105 on Dragics layup with 32.5 seconds to play. But that was as close as they got, as Matt Barnes made three of four free throws to close it out. Barnes finished with 13 points, just six days after scoring a season-high 28 -- including six 3-pointers -- and making 12 of his first 13 shots in the Clippers 104-96 win at Phoenix. Things got testy with 5:28 remaining, as Griffin and P.J. Tucker began wrestling on the floor after they jockeyed for position in the paint on a missed 3-point shot by Barnes and Griffin fell on top of Tucker. The two had to be separated, and the game was delayed while referees Bennie Adams, Jason Phillips and Matt Boland examined the video monitor to sort it all out. Tuucker was charged with a loose ball foul and then ejected, while Griffin stayed in the game.dddddddddddd But not for long. Griffin picked up his sixth foul on a charge under the basket with 3:23 remaining and the Clippers ahead 105-95. Dragic made a pair of driving layups 28 seconds apart to slice the margin to 105-99 with 2:21 to go. But Paul responded with a 16-foot bank shot and two free throws for an eight-point cushion with 1:21 left. The Suns trailed by as many as 25 after Pauls 17-footer extended the Clippers margin to 77-72 with 7:14 left in the third quarter. Barnes hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to give the Clippers a 90-76 lead heading into the fourth. Griffin sat the final 1:03 of the third after picking up his fourth foul, then reported back in with 7:04 remaining and the Los Angeles leading 103-85. The Clippers, who came in averaging a league-best 107.8 points, led 62-45 at halftime by virtue of Griffins 29 points and 11 each by Collison and newly acquired Danny Granger, who had 14 off the bench. They built a 34-23 lead through one quarter after Griffin went 8 for 9 from the field and made all six of his free throws. Griffin came within one point of the franchise record for any quarter, shared by Randy Smith (Oct. 20, 1973 at Boston) and Baron Davis (Jan. 29, 2010 at Minnesota). NOTES: Clippers G Jamal Crawford was on the inactive list for the fourth time in five games because of a left calf strain. He tried to play through it during Saturdays win over Atlanta, but spent only 9 1-2 minutes on the court and attempted two shots -- both of which missed. "I dont know when hes coming back. I just dont know," coach Doc Rivers said. "I didnt think he looked good the other night, just running. I dont get involved very often with that stuff, but he wasnt running natural, so well just wait until hes back to playing 100 per cent." ... The Clippers have scored at 100 or more points in 16 straight home games since their loss to the Suns. Its their longest such streak since the 1983-84 season, their last one in San Diego. ... Griffin posted his 23rd consecutive game with at least 20 points, extending his career-best streak. ' ' '