Super Bowl Sunday featured just one NBA game, but that didn’t lead to any scarcity of headlines. A superstar reminded the basketball community that he’s still one of the game’s elite playmakers, while his team’s opponent reached new heights of putridness.
Here’s everything that you need to know about last night’s game.
1. The Boston Celtics took home the W in the only game of the day, defeating the Orlando Magic 96-89. Boston attempted just 12 free throws and shot 28.6 percent from beyond the arc, but Orlando still found a way to lose at the TD Garden.
This was Boston’s first win since Rajon Rondo returned.
2. Speaking of Rondo, he posted season-high marks of 19 points, 10 assists and three steals with six rebounds. He shot 9-of-11 from the floor and achieved all of his glory in 27 minutes of game action.
It was Rondo’s first double-double since January 25, 2013—the day that he suffered a season-ending knee injury.
3. Jared Sullinger teamed with Rondo to put up 21 points and 12 rebounds on 10-of-15 shooting from the field. In his previous outing, Sullinger had 24 points and 17 rebounds.
This is the first time in his career that Sullinger has scored 20 points in back-to-back games and the ninth time in 2014 that he’s recorded a double-double. By comparison, he had eight career double-doubles before January 1, 2014.
4. This was Boston’s first home win since January 15, 2014.
5. The Orlando Magic are 3-22 on the road. The last time that Orlando won a road game was December 16, 2013, marking a span of 11 straight road losses. It’s the second time this season that the Magic have lost at least 10 straight road games, with the first streak dating back to the 2012-13 season.
Since 2012-13, the Magic are 11-55 on the road. That’s the worst record in the NBA in that time frame.