Jeremy Lin is heading to Houston, leaving the bright lights of Broadway and a legion of heartbroken Knicks fans behind. Linsanity, the exhilarating rush sparked by Lin’s meteoric rise to fame, is over, at least in New York.

The Knicks cut ties with Lin on Tuesday night, ending a brief, spectacular and now-bittersweet love affair between Lin, a 23-year-old point guard, and an adoring fan base. Lin will play next season for the Houston Rockets, who signed him to a three-year, $25.1 million offer sheet that the Knicks chose not to match.

The Knicks conveyed their intentions to Lin sometime after 10 p.m., less than two hours before the deadline to make the decision, and several hours after The New York Times reported that Lin would be let go.

After hours of silence, a Knicks spokesman ended any remaining suspense with a brief statement around 10:45 p.m., saying simply, “I can confirm we are not matching.” The Knicks offered no explanation or further comment. It was unclear when, or if, team officials would address the matter, but the Rockets said Lin would be introduced as a member of the team at a news conference Thursday.