The set-up: The 12-8 Boston Celtics are in Houston tonight up against the 13-7 Rockets. Both teams come in playing well, as Boston has won six of eight and are two games into a stretch of eight of 10 on the road. Speaking of the road, Houston has played a league-high 14 road games thus far, after completing its second five-game road trip of the season with a sparkling 4-1 record.

Boston: The Celtics barely squeaked past the Philadelphia 76ers 107-106 to begin their road trip Saturday night behind another stellar performance from PG Isaiah Thomas, whose 37-point effort marked his fifth 30-point game this season. Thomas is averaging 26.3 PPG and 6.3 APG. Avery Bradley (17.7) supported Thomas' effort with 20 points of his own and he hauled in nine rebounds for the second straight game to bump his season average to 7.9, five more than his career mark. Free-agent center Al Horford (14.9-6.5-4.6) is back on the court and has now played in 10 games (Celtics are 7-3). He has averaged 16.7 points in seven wins and 10.7 in three losses.

Houston: The Rockets capped their five-game road trip with an impressive 132-127 (2-OT) win at Golden St. on Thursday, followed by a 128-110 win at Denver the very next night. Seven players scored in double figures and Houston was 17-of-37 from three-point range at Denver, hitting their league-leading average in long-range attempts and bumping their percentage to 37.8, good for fifth in the NBA through Saturday. Houston ranks second with 114.4 PPG on 46.6% shooting (3rd). Harden (28.3-7.6-11.8) leads the way but four others are contributing between 12.1 and 16.4 PPG. Also, the return of Patrick Beverley (7.0-4.4-3.9), the team's best defensive player on the perimeter, has been huge. Houston is 7-2 in the games he's started.

The pick: The Celtics have beaten Western Conference foes the likes of the Mavs (4-15) and T-wolves (6-14) but are 0-5 SU & ATS against the other five Western Conference opponents they've faced. Boston is stepping way up in class here and Houston is a 10* play.