As the saying goes, ‘fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.’
Well, the Boston Celtics have been shamed.
For the second straight game, the defending NBA champions coughed up a 20-point second-half lead on its way to a head-scratching loss. Boston was outscored 23-6 down the stretch in Game 2 of its Eastern Conference semifinal against the New York Knicks on Wednesday night, sealing the deal on a 91-90 defeat.
The Celtics now trail the best-of-seven series, 2-0, after dropping a pair of games in Boston, with Game 3 slated for Saturday afternoon in New York. And while Boston may be able to find some comfort in the fact they swept the Knicks in four regular-season meetings, 85 percent of teams that have won the first-two games of a series have gone on to finish the deal.
‘We Just Have To Figure It Out’
“I take solace in the fact that we have a challenge ahead of us and a chance to go after it together and we’ve got to do it,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla told reporters after the game. “We don’t really have a choice. We just have to figure it out.”
Once again, the Celtics appeared to be the dominant team from the opening tip, bullying their way to an 11-point lead by the end of the first quarter. Though Boston continued to struggle from beyond the arc — the team set an NBA playoff record with 45 missed three-pointers in Game 1 — the home team still had a 20-point edge late in the third quarter. But that’s when their shooting woes caught up with them.
While not as staggering as Game 1, the Celtics finished a dismal 10-of-40 from deep and 34-for-94 from the floor as a whole. The Knicks, meanwhile, were a more efficient 29 percent from three and 43 percent from the floor, providing the narrowest edge needed to escape with the one-point one.
“Obviously, being down 0-2, it sucks, but we got a great group and if I could select any guys that could get it done, it’s the group we have in the locker room,” Boston forward Jaylen Brown said after the game. “We just got to come out, be a little more poised, take a deep breath, convert our opportunities. We missed layups, easy baskets. In two games, we up twenty points and somehow, not end up with wins. It’s inexcusable, but we’re going to learn from it. We’re going to respond.”
The Celtics surrendered yet another 20-point lead against the New York Knicks, dropping Game 2, 91-90.
Who Did What?
The Celtics were led offensively by a pair of 20-point performances from Jaylen Brown (six rebounds, two steals) and Derrick white (nine rebounds, five assists, two blocks), while Jayson Tatum (13 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, three steals) continued to struggle with his shot. The six-time All-Star finished 5-for-19 from the floor, including 1-of-5 from beyond the arc. Only Jrue Holiday (10 points, five assists) also scored in double figures for Boston.
New York, on the other hand, was led by a 23-point effort from Josh Hart (six rebounds, three assists). Karl-Anthony Towns added 21 points and 17 rebounds for the visiting team, followed by Jalen Brunson (17 points, seven assists) and Mikal Bridges (14 points, seven rebounds, five assists).
End Of My Celtics Rant
“In a way, it kind of takes all the pressure off of us. If you check the odds, maybe the Knicks are the favorites now to win. We were expected to win, so for us to be in this hole with our backs against the wall, we have nothing to lose,” Kristaps Porzingis said. “So, we’ve got to go back out there [and] leave it all out on the floor. There’s a lot of basketball yet to play. Let’s see where this goes.”
Boston’s back may be up against the wall, but the defending NBA champions have outplayed their opponent in six out of the series’ eight quarters — and by far. So if the Celtics can put an end to their fourth-quarter struggles, it may still be a matter of how long (not if) it will take them to advance to the next round.
