The Celtics are starting to command plenty of respect around the NBA with their play on the court.

On Monday night, a perceived lack of respect from the Houston Rockets was a catalyst for Boston cruising to its third straight victory, a 111-95 win over the hosts in Houston.

The Celtics trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half, but the game fully turned in Boston’s favor following a dustup in the third quarter between Terrence Jones and Amir Johnson.

The two players got tied up after an out of bounds call. Johnson was lying with the ball on the floor attempting to get up, while Jones stood over him while trying to pry the ball out of Johnson’s hands.


Players from both teams quickly surrounded the minor fracas, leading to technical fouls for James Harden, Jones, Isaiah Thomas and Smart.

Boston responded to the incident with a 39-12 run over the next 12 minutes of play, breaking open a tight 61-60 contest with some terrific execution on both sides of the court.

You know things are going well when Avery Bradley is running a strong fast break https://t.co/PjxK5P1tae — Brian Robb (@CelticsHub) November 17, 2015

Marcus Smart showing off the arm. https://t.co/tYck80mfRT — Brian Robb (@CelticsHub) November 17, 2015

After the game, Thomas and Jae Crowder left no doubt about the impact the Johnson-Jones sequence had on the team’s mentality.

“We had a guy down and their guy (Jones) kind of straddled (Johnson) and wouldn’t let our guy up,’’ Crowder told reporters, via CSNNE.com. “We saw it as a sign of disrespect. We just came to his rescue, and we weren’t having it. That’s what sparked it.’’

“I just went to go protect my teammate,’’ Thomas added. “It was very disrespectful to stand over somebody.’’

The victory gives Boston five wins in its last six games, all of which have come by 13 or more points. The strong stretch makes the Celtics look like a team that is meshing well with their play, but the Johnson incident on Monday also shows the players already have each other’s back on the floor as well.


Photos: Unbelieveable images from the old Boston Garden