3rd Quarter Report

Down three at the end of the second quarter, the Thunder now have the lead. They have a bit of a cushion as they currently lead the Celtics 98-86.

The Thunder entered the matchup having won four straight and they're just one quarter away from another. Will they make it five, or will the Celtics step up and spoil it? We'll know soon.

Who's Playing

Boston Celtics @ Oklahoma City Thunder

Current Records: Boston 26-6, Oklahoma City 22-9

How To Watch

  • When: Tuesday, January 2, 2024 at 8 p.m. ET
  • Where: Paycom Center -- Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
  • TV: Bally Sports Oklahoma
  • Follow: CBS Sports App
  • Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
  • Ticket Cost: $31.99

What to Know

The Boston Celtics will head out on the road to face off against the Oklahoma City Thunder at 8:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday at Paycom Center. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as the Celtics come in on six and the Thunder on four.

The Celtics entered their contest on Sunday as the heavy favorite, and they fully lived up to expectations. Everything went their way against San Antonio as Boston made off with a 134-101 win. The Celtics pushed the score to 105-76 by the end of the third, a deficit the Spurs had little chance of recovering from.

The Celtics' win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Jaylen Brown, who scored 24 points along with six rebounds. Less helpful for the Celtics was Kristaps Porzingis' abysmal 0-7 three-point shooting.

Meanwhile, winning is just a little bit easier when your three-point shooting is a whole 28.4% better than the opposition, a fact the Thunder proved on Sunday. They strolled past Brooklyn with points to spare, taking the game 124-108.

Boston is on a roll lately: they've won 11 of their last 12 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 26-6 record this season. As for Oklahoma City, their win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 22-9.

Tuesday's game is shaping up to be a scrappy match: The Celtics have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 47.3 rebounds per game (they're ranked first in rebounds per game overall). It's a different story for the Thunder, though, as they've been averaging only 41 rebounds per game. Given the Celtics' sizeable advantage in that area, the Thunder will need to find a way to close that gap.

The Celtics suffered a grim 150-117 defeat to the Thunder in their previous meeting back in January of 2023. The matchup was pretty much over by halftime, at which point the Celtics were down 74-54.

Odds

Boston is a 3.5-point favorite against Oklahoma City, according to the latest NBA odds.

The line has drifted a bit towards the Celtics, as the game opened with the Celtics as a 2-point favorite.


The over/under is set at 240 points.

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Series History

Boston has won 7 out of their last 10 games against Oklahoma City.

  • Jan 03, 2023 - Oklahoma City 150 vs. Boston 117
  • Nov 14, 2022 - Boston 126 vs. Oklahoma City 122
  • Mar 21, 2022 - Boston 132 vs. Oklahoma City 123
  • Nov 20, 2021 - Boston 111 vs. Oklahoma City 105
  • Apr 27, 2021 - Oklahoma City 119 vs. Boston 115
  • Mar 27, 2021 - Boston 111 vs. Oklahoma City 94
  • Mar 08, 2020 - Oklahoma City 105 vs. Boston 104
  • Feb 09, 2020 - Boston 112 vs. Oklahoma City 111
  • Feb 03, 2019 - Boston 134 vs. Oklahoma City 129
  • Oct 25, 2018 - Boston 101 vs. Oklahoma City 95