– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
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BOSTON — Seven months removed from the Boston Celtics’ ill-fated playoff series with the New York Knicks, the obvious changes made by both squads in their first meeting in Beantown since then quickly morphed into a contest that turned into an almost eerie case of déjà vu. A couple of differences from the Celtics of the spring and the squad this fall, notably the emergence of unheralded role players who were largely on the bench, were the difference makers in ensuring Boston did not repeat its haunted history against one of their eternal rivals.
Oh, and the Celtics still can rely on at least one “J” to take over and push them over the finish line.
Jaylen Brown scored a season-high 42 points as the Celtics held off a late charge to defeat the New York Knicks 123-117 in a rematch of last season’s Eastern Conference semifinal series. Derrick White scored seven of his 22 points in the last four minutes, as he and Brown combined to shoot a scorching 24-of-40 (60 percent) from the field. Boston shot 56.3 percent from the field overall, including a mind-boggling 36-of-47 from inside the arc.
Much like both Game 1 and Game 2 of last year’s playoff series that New York eventually won while Boston saw Jayson Tatum suffer a torn Achilles tendon in Game 4, the Knicks once again overcame a sizable fourth-quarter deficit. Boston started the quarter up 18 after a White three to end the third and were still up 102-87 before New York went on a 12-0 run. Mikal Bridges, who scored a team-high 35 points, started the run with a triple before hitting three free throws after a flagrant foul on Hugo Gonzalez for a reckless closeout on a three-point attempt. The Knicks turned that possession into a six-point trip when, after maintaining possession following the flagrant free throws, Karl-Anthony Towns converted an old-fashioned three-point play to cut the Celtics’ lead to 102-96.
Another Bridges three-pointer closed the run and brought New York within three.
Heretofore carried by Brown, who scored 37 points in the first three quarters, it was the Celtics’ role players who stepped up large to close out the game. Josh Minott nailed a three-pointer to stop the run, and Jordan Walsh scored on back-to-back putbacks off his own offensive rebounds to extend Boston’s lead to eight. Once more, a Bridges three brought New York within three with 2:40 remaining at 113-110, but Walsh responded on the ensuing possession with a driving layup off the glass and in traffic. Boston’s lead did not fall below four for the rest of the contest.
Walsh also came up with a clutch steal late in the game, and he, Minott and Sam Hauser all took turns in guarding Jalen Brunson down the stretch, and Boston held New York’s superstar to just 15 points on 6-of-21 shooting.
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Tuesday evening’s game, with photos taken by ALOST photo editor Erica Denhoff. After clicking on a photo to enlarge the picture, press the left and right arrow buttons on either side of the caption to scroll through the rest of the pictures that appear on the first page, Also, click on the numbers and/or arrow appearing immediately below the picture grid to load the next set of photos. There are 30 pictures in total.
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