Celtics head coach Ime Udoka was greeted with a celebratory dousing of water bottles in the away locker room at the Toyota Center on Sunday night as the Boston Celtics snagged their first win of the season, defeating the Houston Rockets, 107-97.
Win number 1 for Coach U ☘️🎉 pic.twitter.com/qJBMmuHBbd
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) October 25, 2021
After losing back-to-back games to start off the season, Boston made its way to the win column thanks to Jayson Tatum’s 31 points and 9 boards, along with an 17 point double-double from Al Horford.
The first regular-season week was more than tough for the C’s squad, who suffered a double-overtime loss to the New York Knicks on opening night and a 32-point blowout by the Raptors. However, last night’s victory got the ball rolling in the right direction.
“It’s special,” Udoka said, per AP News. “I told them it was overdue and ‘You guys took too long to get it’. … It’s good to get it, not just for the first, but to kind of get us rolling on the right foot. I think we played the right way tonight, defended how we could after that first quarter.”
With Jaylen Brown sidelined due to knee soreness, Udoka put in Dennis Schröder, who responded with 18 points 5 rebounds and 5 assists.
With an early season showdown against the undefeated Charlotte Hornets looming tonight, Udoka will have to pocket his historic win and set his sights on slowing down the Hornets’ run-and-gun style of offense.
