Boston — Steve Francis' headaches were gone and so were Boston's hopes.
Francis had his fourth career triple-double after missing the previous game with migraine headaches and the Houston Rockets beat the Celtics, 104-101, Friday night
"I feel awfully relieved," he said. "I was able to focus on basketball only."
When the Celtics focused on Francis, he passed to the open man as Boston struggled against a team that moved the ball crisply and had several three-point shooters.
"We hadn't see one-on-one basketball like that all season, so it was definitely a challenge for us," Boston's Antoine Walker said.
Francis had 26 points 14 in the fourth quarter and added a season-high 15 rebounds and 10 assists. He scored just six points in the first half. Without him on Wednesday night, the Rockets lost to Toronto 109-103.
"I wanted to come in and help them do the same thing they were doing" against the Raptors, Francis said. "So I came out passing the ball and playing good defense."
Cuttino Mobley had 21 points for Houston and set up Moochie Norris' critical three-pointer that made the score 100-96 with 27 seconds left. Norris tied his career-high with 28 points as Francis' replacement against Toronto.
"Every time I end up being the open man on that play," said Norris, who finished with seven points. "I had a feeling they'd sag off me a little bit."
The win was Houston's fourth in 19 road games and ended Boston's three-game winning streak. The Celtics were led by Paul Pierce with 38 points and Walker with 25. Each had 11 rebounds.
"They challenge you defensively, the way they spread the court," Pierce said. "They have a lot of really good perimeter shooters. Their record (13-26) doesn't really show how good of a team they are."
Houston is 12-9 with Francis, but 1-17 without him.
The Rockets hit 12 of 23 shots from three-point range. Mobley was 5-for-8 and Eddie Griffin, who had 19 points, went 3-for-5.
The Celtics led only twice, 20-19 and 42-41, but closed to within 97-95 with four consecutive points. Walker then made one of two free throws, cutting the lead to one with 42 seconds to go.
Then Norris hit his basket from the left corner.
The Celtics made it 102-101 on Walker's three-pointer with 5.4 seconds remaining before Francis hit two free throws with 4.9 seconds to go. Pierce then dribbled up court but his desperation three-point shot went off the rim at the buzzer.
Bucks 115, Magic 110
Milwaukee Sam Cassell scored 26 points, including a key three-pointer and four free throws in the last minute, to give Milwaukee a victory over Orlando. The victory extended the Bucks' winning streak to six games. It also gave them a 10-game winning streak in the regular season against Orlando.
Raptors 89, Nets 77
Toronto Vince Carter scored 23 points, including six straight late in the fourth quarter, as Toronto ended New Jersey's six-game winning streak. Antonio Davis added 17 points, Dell Curry had 15 and Keon Clark had 13 rebounds and 10 points for the Raptors, who have won three straight and five of six.
Pistons 96, Pacers 93
Indianapolis Jerry Stackhouse scored 32 points and Cliff Robinson added 27 as Detroit beat Indiana to snap an 11-game road losing streak. Robinson put the Pistons ahead on a jumper with 30 seconds left that gave Detroit a 91-89 lead. The Pacers cut it to 94-91, but Reggie Miller's three-point attempt was blocked by Ben Wallace with six seconds left.
Suns 103,
Timberwolves 100 OT
Phoenix Stephon Marbury overcame a poor shooting night by hitting a three-pointer with 4.5 seconds to play in overtime to help Phoenix snap Minnesota's nine-game winning streak. Marbury shot just 7-for-28 on the game but finished with 23 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.
Nuggets 96, SuperSonics 90
Denver Ryan Bowen had 12 points during a 38-7 run that helped rally Denver past Seattle. Voshon Lenard and Avery Johnson each had 10 points during the flurry, which erased a 13-point deficit midway through the third quarter and produced an 18-point lead with 8:32 left.
Kings 121, Warriors 97
Sacramento, Calif. Chris Webber had 26 points, eight rebounds and six assists before fouling out as Sacramento became the first team to win 11 straight games this season. The Kings have won 15 consecutive games at Arco Arena, where they are an NBA-best 22-1.
Clippers 109,
Cavaliers 103
Los Angeles Elton Brand scored 24 points and Quentin Richardson scored 11 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter. Michael Olowokandi added a season-high 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Clippers.
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