NBA Triple Threat: Your (almost) daily roundup of last night's action in the Association:

Boston 94, Houston 74 It was a great run for the Houston Rockets, but their big streak came crashing down in the span of one half. The Rockets and Celtics were tied at halftime, but Boston poured it on in the second half as Houston's shots stopped falling. The crowd at the Toyota Center gave the Rockets a deserving standing ovation at the end of the game. The Celtics meanwhile, who were again playing without Ray Allen, again staked their claim as the favorites for the championship, given how well they're playing and the fact they don't have to go through the psychotic West.

LA Lakers 102, Dallas 100 The Mavs' comeback came 2 point short. Despite trailing by 25 in the third quarter, Dallas stormed back to down just two with the ball as time was running out. However, the best Dallas could do in that final possession was a long, wild, off-balance three by Dirk Nowitzki. It missed, and the Lakers survived. A disturbing stat for Dallas: Since adding Jason Kidd, they are 0-6 against teams with winning records.

Detroit 136, Denver 120 John Hollinger's latest theory is that defense isn't the problem in Denver, it just looks that way because of how fast they place. While I think he's partially correct there, things like giving up 136 point to the Pistons do not help in legitimizing that argument. That's the most points Detroit has scored in regulation since 1990. The Pistons shot an insane 60.4% from the field. The Nuggets are a game and a half back of Golden State for the 8th seed in the West.

Best Lines

• Lamar Odom, LAL: 17 pts, 17 rebs, 2 ast, 2 stl, 1 blk
• Kevin Garnett, Bos: 22 pts, 11 rebs, 3 ast, 3 stl, 2 blk...Call me crazy, but I think KG's happier in Boston then he was in Minnesota.
• Kevin Martin, Sac: 34 pts, 13-22 FG, 7 rebs, 2 ast, 2 stl...The Kings beat the Warriors, preventing Golden State from further distancing themselves from the Nuggets.

Rumors du Jour

• Bynum won't return until first round of playoffs (reported on Sportscenter) - If this is the case, I'm not sure we'll see much of Bynum in the playoffs. That's not a good time to get someone back into the flow of competitive basketball.
• Taylor: KG tanked - [Expletive deleted] you, Mr. Taylor.
• Miles' injury career ending? - Where does Darius Miles rank on the bust list?
• DeAndre Jordan leaning towards draft - Everytime I play the ESPN.com Draft Lottery, and the Wolves don't get a top two pick, it mocks me by drafting this guy, who sounds like Olowkandi 2.0.

Now it's your turn: share your thoughts on the on and off court action Tuesday in the NBA.