Not only did the defending champion Boston Celtics blow a 20-point advantage in Game 1 of its Eastern Conference semifinal against the New York Knicks on Monday night, but they did it in record fashion.
The Celtics were known for their dominance from beyond the arc throughout the regular season. They missed an NBA playoff record 45 three-pointers to the dismay of the TD Garden crowd, finishing just 15-of-60 from long range. The Knicks, on the other hand, connected on 17-of-37 of their three-point attempts, giving the visiting team the edge it needed to secure a 108-105 overtime victory.
New York now leads the best-of-seven series, 1-0, effectively stealing homecourt advantage from the conference’s No. 2 seed. Game 2 is slated for Wednesday night in Boston.
‘It’s a Make or Miss League’
“Obviously, in hindsight, if we could go back, we probably would drive the ball a little bit more because we missed a lot of shots tonight,” Tatum told reporters after the game. “But it’s a balance. Sometimes it’s a make or miss league, and then there’s sometimes where you know you can get a better shot.”
Boston’s shooting woes weren’t just prominent from distance. The Celtics shot a collective 34-for-97 from the floor, worth a field-goal percentage of just 35.1 percent. By comparison, the Knicks — who had their own share of offensive struggles that resulted in a 20-point first-half deficit — shot 37-for-87 for a field-goal percentage of 42.5 percent.
“Some of them felt good. Some of them felt like we maybe forced the issue and definitely our rhythm and our timing was a little bit off,” Jaylen Brown said. “We got a lot of great looks, but it may be some truth that we got to look at the film to see what happened in that second half.”
The Celtics dropped Game 1 of its Eastern Conference semifinal series with the New York Knicks on Monday.
Who Did What?
Jayson Tatum (16 rebounds, six assists, two steals) and Jaylen Brown (seven rebounds, five assists) paced Boston’s offense with 23 points apiece, while Derrick White (19 points, 11 rebounds), Jrue Holiday (16 points, five rebounds, three assists), and Payton Pritchard (13 points, three rebounds) also scored in double figures.
The Knicks, meanwhile, were led by 29-point efforts from both OG Anunoby and Jalen Brunson, with the latter having scored 11 straight points in the third quarter. Karl Anthony-Towns (14 points, 13 rebounds), Josh Hart (14 points, 11 rebounds, three assists), and Mile McBride (11 points) also played well for New York.
Celtics Injury Update
Boston welcomed the return of Holiday to the starting lineup following several games missed with a hamstring injury but now has new cause for concern following Game 1. Sam Hauser left Monday night’s game after just four minutes of action with a sprained ankle after contesting a Knicks three-point attempt. He was ruled questionable to return but failed to make an appearance on the court or bench.
The Celtics also played the second half without starting center Kristaps Porzingis due to an illness. Porzingis was held scoreless during 13 minutes of action in the first half but did pull down four rebounds.
“Obviously it impacts the game with his ability on both ends of the floor,” Joe Mazzulla said of Porzingis’s absence. “It obviously changes sub patterns or changes the things that you’re able to do matchup-wise and play-call-frequency wise, so yeah, I think we felt it, but it’s no excuse. We had plenty of opportunities to do it, and hopefully he’s ready for Game 2.”
End Of My Celtics Rant
Now, the Celtics head into Wednesday night’s matchup with their backs against the wall, needing to even up the series at 1-1 or face a daunting 2-0 deficit in New York. Boston was 19-2 after a loss during the regular season, so with any luck, the TD Garden crowd should have plenty to cheer about.
