The Boston Celtics showed their heart, determination, and perhaps most important, championship mettle in Game 5 against the New York Knicks without Jayson Tatum.
And it was more than enough for the Celtics to stave off elimination and throttle the Knicks on the famed parquet at TD Garden. The Celtics put together a complete performance with their star sidelined as they secured a 127-102 win on Wednesday night to set up a Game 6 back in New York on Friday.
Boston’s stars stepped up and the Celtics received a spectacular showing from an unlikely source. With the game tied at 59-all at halftime, the Celtics took control in the third quarter by outscoring the Knicks, 32-17, in the frame. They didn’t blow the double-digit lead this go-around as their strong 3-point shooting — Boston shot 44.9% (22-for-49) from deep — carried them to the finish line.
Here are three studs and three duds from Boston’s Game 5 win:
STUDSJaylen BrownAll eyes were on Brown to see if he could be a true No. 1 with Tatum sidelined, and Brown delivered. Brown was Boston’s alpha, shouldering an incredibly heavy load and doing whatever was needed of him on both ends of the floor — and doing it at a high level, too. He totaled 26 points on 9-for-17 shooting to go along with a career-high 12 assists and eight rebounds. If that wasn’t enough, Brown also played lockdown defense at times on Knicks star guard Jalen Brunson.
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It was a terrific performance from the Celtics star, and a reminder that the reigning NBA Finals and Eastern Conference finals MVP can be the best player on the floor during a playoff series.
Derrick WhiteWhite came out on fire and never really lost the hot hand. White knocked down his first five shots and scored 14 of Boston’s first 18 points to give the Celtics an instant spark before finishing with a game-high 34 points. White’s performance was fueled by the seven 3-pointers he hit in 13 attempts. White just seems to know how to rise to the occasion whenever the Celtics need him to.
Luke KornetThe Celtics needed someone unexpected to step up and Kornet answered that call in a big way. Kornet came off the bench and proved to be the perfect interior piece to stymie the Knicks in the paint. Kornet totaled an eye-popping seven blocks, which was two shy of a franchise record, while also grabbing nine rebounds and chipping in with 10 points in 26 minutes. The 7-foot-1 center was instrumental in the third quarter as his energy on the defensive end propelled Boston.
DUDSKristaps PorzingisPorzingis was useless on the floor for the Celtics as the 7-foot-2 center, who has been battling an illness during the playoffs, was a shell of himself. Porzingis was so ineffective that Joe Mazzulla benched Porzingis for the entire second half. Porzingis missed all three shots he took from the field and score only one point while also grabbing just one rebound in 12 minutes. Porzingis needs to figure things out quickly because the perspective of him is changing among Celtics fans.
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OG Anunoby Knicks fans are riding a wave when it comes to Anunoby, who has experienced highs and lows throughout the series. After scoring 20 points in Game 4, Anunoby followed it up by hitting another low point. The 6-foot-7, 240-pound wing shot a putrid 1-for-12 from the floor to finish with six points, eight rebounds and two assists.
Celtics’ free-throw shootingThe only real blemish for the Celtics came at the free-throw line. It was a good thing for the Celtics that their misses at the charity stripe didn’t come back to haunt it. The Celtics shot just 65.4% from the free-throw line as they made 17-of-26 attempts. Jrue Holiday was the biggest culprit as he made three freebies. The Celtics need to shore that up if they want to have a chance to bring the series back to Boston.