BOSTON -- The Celtics suffered their worst loss of the season on Saturday night as a well-rested Rockets squad crushed Boston 128-101 at TD Garden. The Rockets ended the Celtics’ three-game winning streak with the convincing win as they took a 13-point first quarter lead and did not look back, leading by as many as 36 points in the convincing rout.

Suddenly, the Knicks are one of the favorites and the Celtics are on a lower tier in the Eastern Conference. Things went according to (the new) script on Friday, when New York cruised to a 105-95 victory on in the second game of the season for both teams. It’s kind of amazing how this rivalry turned on a dime.

Pick up the Pace – After a lot of talk about playing faster in the preseason, the Celtics slowed it down in their first 3 games. They were 7th in pace in the preseason (106.13) but they are 25th after their first 3 games (97.5) Their best hope this season is to play fast and hard. They need to play faster and harder in order to get back to winning.

BOTTOM LINE: Utah looks to end its three-game slide with a victory over Boston. Boston went 61-21 overall a season ago while going 28-13 at home. The Celtics averaged 116.3 points per game last season, 41.2 in the paint, 15.6 off of turnovers and 11.9 on fast breaks.

Jaylen Brown scored a game-high 30 points and the Boston Celtics dominated the final three quarters in a rout of the Cleveland Cavaliers on Oct. 29.

The Celtics again started fast, and this time, they didn’t give up the lead. The C’s sprinted away with a 122-90 win over the Pelicans on Monday in New Orleans. The Celtics are now 1-3 on the year, halting their losing streak, while the Pelicans fell to 0-3.

For the first time since the 2013-14 season, the Boston Celtics have opened their campaign with three straight losses. Their latest setback, a 119-113 defeat to the Detroit Pistons on Sunday, has left the team searching for answers and perspective after a surprisingly sluggish start.

Kevin Durant scored 26 points in three quarters before resting the fourth, Amen Thompson added 17 points and nine rebounds, and the Houston Rockets beat the Boston Celtics 128-101.