On a chilly night in Massachusetts, the New York Knicks (13-7) crushed the first quarter behind scorching shooting from McBride and Hart, but the Celtics (12-9) stormed back with a dominant second period and rode Jaylen Brown to a 58–52 halftime score. In the third, Brown kept scoring in the paint (from everywhere, really), the Knicks’ defense vanished, and the score ballooned to 94–76 heading into the fourth. With Jalen Brunson spinning his wheels (6-of-21 from the floor tonight), Mikal Bridges provided second half heroics and the Knicks won the final frame 41-29, but an 18-point hole proved too much to overcome. Boston wins, 123-117.
Bridges finished with a season-high 35 points and a career-high of eight three-pointers, missing only four long attempts. Add six boards, three dimes, and two steals and this is a contender for best Bridges game as a Knick. Conversely, Brunson’s statline is brutal: 15 points on a horrible shooting night, uncharacteristically missing normally money bunnies and yapping at the refs for no-calls. One for the wastebasket.
Boston won the boards and outscored New York by 14 in the paint. Brown recorded 42 points on 16-of-24 and Derrick White added 22. The Celtics, known for their longball shooting, changed their strategy to attack from within the arc. They made just 13-of-40 from deep, but 56% from the field. Tough loss, and you just know it would be a different story if OG Anunoby was available.
First Half
It was weird to hear so many fans at TD Garden saying, in unison, “*Deeeuuuccceee!*” whenever McBride cocked back for a triple. The Knicks fanatics who infiltrated the enemy camp had reason to cheer early, as the visitors went ahead 17-4—thanks in part to Miles hitting two from deep. According to the intrepid Ian Begley, with that pair, McBride had hit 14 of his last 22 attempts from deep. Sure seems like he’s overcome whatever ailed him to start the season.
Also on fire: Josh Hart, making all three of his first 3P attempts. With three minutes to go, and Mitchell Robinson in, Boston coach Joe Mazzulla began his Hack-A-Mitch strategy. The big fella made one of four freebies. It makes for a tedious watch. Meanwhile, the Celtics turned the ball over five times to the Knicks’ one, and Boston missed eight longball tries until Anfernee Simons made one with 30 seconds to go. Score after one: Knicks, 32-21.
In the second frame, Boston made 12 straight, trimming New York’s lead to two. After that dip, the Knicks tried to right the ship with another Hart three-pointer (4-for-4 so far) and this crafty Kolek move:
Boston had momentum, though. They outscored the Knicks 12-3 and, behind a Jaylen Brown scoring burst (he dropped 18 points in the frame), took the lead around the five-minute mark and went ahead by seven with two-ish minutes left. Outscored 37-20 in the quarter, the Knicks entered intermission behind, 58-52.
New York lived on the perimeter, hitting nine threes at a 43% clip and swinging the ball for 13 assists. They also grabbed six offensive boards and five steals. The Beantown Bunch was supposed to attack behind the arc, but thus far, they’d hit just four threes (24%) and done all their damage scoring 32 points in the paint.
Second Half
Jaylen Brown found the Knicks frontcourt exceedingly accommodating to his driving layups, and so he continued to visit the cup. When he felt like mixing it up, he added a mid-range jumper, and, for kicks, a three-pointer. Here the jerk imitates Dirk:
Mikal Bridges was warming up, making 14 of his 18 points (so far), but the Knicks still trailed by 10 with about four minutes left. They weren’t getting calls, which flustered them, and they didn’t play defense, which burned them. A 12-0 Celtics run to end the frame—which included two poorly-timed Knicks turnovers—goosed the score to 94-76. Wherefore art thou, OG Anunoby?
Coach Mike Brown followed his usual formula, starting Kolek for Brunson to kick off the fourth quarter, letting Captain Clutch recharge for late game availability. Coach also went double-big, with Towns and Robinson sharing the floor (finally…), plus Hart and Clarkson. While Jaylen Brown also rested, the Knicks’ odd assortment started the period 11-2 to come within nine. That 18-point hole was mighty deep to overcome, however. Sam Hauser hit a trey; KAT turned the ball over (trying to dribble behind his back in traffic...), which resulted in a Simons three-point play; and Brunson, back on the battlefield, whiffed on another long attempt (he was 1-of-8 by late in the fourth). It didn’t look good. . . .
But here comes Mikal! He scored eight points in the first half of the fourth to whittle the difference to three.
Immediately after, Jordan Walsh scored four unanswered points (and stole the ball), and Josh Minott made a corner shot without a defender in spitting distance. Every time the Knicks got close, they let the Green Goons pad the lead again. With two minutes left, New York was down by five. Brunson tried to draw a charge but that backfired. Brown hit two freebies for a seven-point lead.
Bridges drilled a triple to make it a four-point game with 45 seconds left. Brown passed the ball to the front row, giving them another try, but Mikal missed from yard, and, some late game sloppiness notwithstanding, that concluded matters.
A proper Miranda recap for you lucky mucks. As for the Knicks, they’re zipping home to face the Charlotte Hornets tomorrow. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.