BSJ Game Report: Knicks 91, Celtics 90 - Another late collapse puts Boston in 2-0 hole

Everything you need to know about the Celtics' loss to the Knicks in Game 2 of their East semifinal series, with BSJ insight and analysis.

IN A NUTSHELL

Both teams missed a lot of shots in the first quarter, but the Knicks missed the most as Boston went up 11. The lead grew to 16, but the Knicks closed the second quarter on an 11-4 run, and the halftime lead was nine. It got up to 2,0 and just like Game 1, the Knicks quickly cut it down, making it 12 heading into the fourth. Once again, the Celtics went ice cold in the fourth while the Knicks began making every play to take the lead. The teams exchanged leads once more and, just like Game 1, the Celtics turned it over with a chance to win. 

Box Score

HEADLINES

- It happened again: It’s amazing how closely these two games resembled one another. The Celtics' 20-point lead came late in the third quarter, 70-50, the Knicks hit a 3, and then Boston answered to make it 73-53. In Game 1, the Celtics led 72-52, the Knicks hit a 3, and Boston answered to make it 75-55. In Game 1, the Celtics scored 23 points in the third and 16 in the fourth. In Game 2, it was 23 and 17. 

- Ice cold: The Celtics shot 5-24 in the fourth while the Knicks were 12-24. Jayson Tatum (1-5) and Al Horford (1-6) were the only starters to hit shots. Jaylen Brown was 0-4, Derrick White was 0-3, and Jrue Holiday didn’t take a shot. The Celtics went 1-17 after going up 16 with just under nine minutes to go, 0-7 from 3. 

- Backs against the wall: There's no other way to say this, the season comes down to Saturday afternoon’s game in MSG. I’ve been saying all along that New York’s only chance is a repeat of the 2023 Miami series and it’s sort of happening. Boston is 25-100 from 3 and the Knicks are getting a lot of bounces their way. The Celtics CANNOT go down 3-0 on Saturday. 

TURNING POINT 

Payton Pritchard hit a 3 with 8:40 left in the fourth to make it 84-68. The Celtics' next made field goal came on Tatum’s dunk with :19 to go, an eight-minute, 21-second drought where the Celtics only scored four points on free throws. The Knicks went on a 23-6 run in that stretch to win the game. 

THINGS I LIKED

Payton Pritchard: He was the only one hitting shots in the fourth, though I didn’t like his last miss. The playoffs aren’t the place for heat checks from role players. 

Tatum’s rebounding: He had 14 in this game after 16 in Game 1. He’s doing a good job on the boards. 

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE

Closing quarters: The Knicks closed the second quarter on an 11-4 run, the third on a 8-0 run, and the fourth 23-6 (14-4 in the final five minutes). It’s a point of emphasis for Mazzulla but the team is struggling to finish these quarters off and it’s costing them. The Celtics had opportunities all game long to break it open, but couldn't come through. 

Lack of poise: Are these guys the champs? Where’s the experience shining through? One team looks like it’s been here before, and it’s not the Celtics. 

Jayson Tatum & Jaylen Brown: They finished 13-42 from the field, 3-12 from 3. Their play down the stretch was bad, and even though they had some good defensive moments and Tatum was rebounding well, the misses, and the timing of them, are concerning. These are the guys who are supposed to hit the shots to hold teams off. Where are they?

Kristaps Porzingis: He’s dealing with some sort of rebound case of whatever the illness was that kept him out late in the regular season. 

“I’m not feeling my best at all, but it just kills me inside that it’s happening in this moment,” Porzingis said. “It’s not no injury or nothing but I’m just not feeling my best and it’s tough for me, honestly. But who cares? Nobody feels sorry for us, sorry for me, and we have to keep going.”

Porzingis giving Boston anything meaningful would change this series dramatically. His inability to be an impactful player is contributing to this bind they're in. He did have one good stretch but then he had to come out because he had nothing in the tank. 

HIGHLIGHTS

TWO TAKES KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- Not calling the timeout on the final possession was the right move. 

Jalen Brunson had two free throws with 13 seconds on the clock. The Celtics know their plays, so there's no need to call timeout to set anything up. The Celtics were trailing by one, so bringing the ball up quickly and trying to get a decent shot with a few seconds left on the clock was the priority.

You keep the timeout in that situation in case you miss. Tatum looked to be taking a shot with four seconds left but made a late decision to pass and turned it into a turnover, so Mazzulla probably didn’t see that as a broken play that needed to be stopped. 

If he shot it and it went in, then Boston would have to defend for maybe two seconds and hope for the best. If he missed and they fouled, then the timeout would have given Boston a second chance because they could then advance the ball. Wasting the timeout there would have eliminated that second chance. The real issue is the crappy execution by the guys on the floor. They need to be better than that.

- The first quarter was a big problem, too. 

The Celtics won the first quarter 24-13 while shooting only 10-25. They were 3-6 in the restricted area and 2-6 in the non-restricted paint area, so 5-12 overall in the paint. Hit three more of those shots plus two free throws (they were 1-3 from the line) and it’s 34-13 after one. That would change the entire direction of the game.  

Next up: The Celtics head to New York for Game 3 on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.