This is sort of becoming the New York Knicks’ thing.
For the fourth time this postseason, the Knicks erased a fourth-quarter deficit to pull out a victory. This time it came on the road in Game 1 of their second-round series against the Boston Celtics, in a 108-105 overtime victory.
The Celtics struggled throughout the night with their shooting, but those issues became far more pronounced in the second half, when Boston bricked shot after shot. The Knicks, on the other hand, scooped rebounds and tried to push the ball up the court to create uncontested looks.
Here are 12 wild stats from Monday night that fueled New York’s 20-point comeback victory over the Celtics at TD Garden in Boston:
From 5:45 in the third quarter until 7:26 in the fourth, the Knicks went on an extended 31-11 run to wipe out a 20-point Boston lead and tie the score at 86.
The Celtics shot 15-of-60 (25%) from 3-point range.
The 60 attempted 3s and 45 misses were both single-game NBA playoffs records.
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined to shoot 5-of-25 (20%) from beyond the arc.
During New York’s lengthy 31-11 run, the Celtics hit just 3-of-15 (20%) attempted 3s; the Knicks, meanwhile, drained 5-of-9 (55.6%) from 3 over that span.
In the fourth quarter, Boston shot just 2-of-15 (13.3%) from beyond the arc.
In the fourth quarter, Tatum scored two points, both of which came on free throws. He missed all seven of his shot attempts, five of which were 3-point tries.
In the second half, OG Anunoby and Jalen Brunson combined to go 13-of-21 (61.9%) from the field, including 8-of-10 (80%) from 3 over that span.
As a team, the Knicks laced 11-of-19 (57.9%) 3-pointers in the second half.
In the second half, Anunoby and Brunson combined for 40 points; Tatum and Brown combined for 14.
Tatum played 9:26 in the fourth quarter. In the period, his player impact estimate (PIE), a statistic used to measure a player’s overall contributions, was -9.4. By comparison, his PIE for the 2024-25 regular season was 15.8.
The Celtics shot 35.1% from the floor, 25% from 3 — missing 45 attempts from beyond the arc — were outscored by 16 in the second half … and lost the game by just three points.
New York Knicks vs. Boston Celtics, Game 2
When: Wednesday
Where: TD Garden, Boston
Time/TV: 7 p.m. ET, TNT
Stream: Sling
Knicks at Celtics, Game 2
