NBA champions miss 45 three pointers in an overtime loss to Knicks

A crazy game to kick off the semifinal series between Boston and New York and an unexpected break by the Knicks – 108:105 after five extra minutes in TD Garden. The Celtics didn’t want to change anything compared to the regular season, sticking to their recognizable run-and-gun basketball style; Orlando couldn’t "hurt" them in the first round, but Tom Thibodeau’s guys found a way. And what a way it was. They were down by 16 at halftime, and early in the third quarter, it looked like a disaster was unfolding – the Celtics pulled ahead by 20 points (75:55) – but as the game neared its end, the home team started to "lose control," while the Knicks played patiently, thoughtfully, chipping away at the lead, and eventually even had a shot to win. Jalen Brunson missed a floater over Al Horford, and the game went to overtime – 100:100.

Although logic and experience suggest that in these situations the psychological advantage goes to the team that survived – in this case, Boston – it was New York who looked much better in the extra five minutes. After several missed shots on both sides, OG Anunoby dunked and drew a foul – 103:100. Then Mikal Bridges hit a three-pointer (106:100), putting the Celtics in a hole they couldn’t escape from. Karl-Anthony Towns sealed the deal with a putback after a Brunson miss. How poorly New York played in the first half is best illustrated by Boston’s large lead, achieved despite the Celtics already missing 18 three-pointers at that point (5/23). Derrick White led the way with 1/7, and Jaylen Brown was 0/6.

The double-digit lead seemingly blinded Joe Mazzulla. It looked like his team, even with such awful shooting percentages, could take the lead in the series. Few expected the Knicks to wake up, but that’s exactly what happened. Boston wasn’t much worse in the second half – New York was simply much, much better than in the first. Most notably, Jalen Brunson woke up – in the first half he had three fouls and only three points – Anunoby played great, and support came from Bridges as well. With a few mini-runs, the Knicks started melting the deficit, reaching a tie multiple times (86:86, 89:89, 91:91), and finally took the lead at 94:91 with three and a half minutes left after a Brunson three-pointer – their first lead since the second quarter (33:31).

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It turned out to be the key moment of the game. The momentum shifted to the visitors, confidence grew, and the Celtics started rushing and making poor decisions. Just in the final 90 seconds, Jayson Tatum lost control three times – missed everything. In the fourth quarter, he went 0/6 from the field (0/5 from three) with a turnover. He didn’t make anything in overtime either. Considering all that, he definitely earns the role of the game’s scapegoat, despite being, along with Brown, Boston’s top scorer. Both had 23 points. Brown also underperformed, hitting just one three-pointer out of ten attempts, and although it was a crucial shot in the final minute, in the next possession of overtime, Mikal Bridges stole the ball from him, securing New York’s victory. So, double-digit three-point attempts came from Brown (1/10), Tatum (4/15), and Derrick White (5/16), which along with some scattered attempts added up to Boston’s 15/60 from beyond the arc – an unacceptable 25%?! And get this: no one in NBA playoff history has ever missed that many three-pointers! On the other side, the Knicks were much better in that department – over 45%. Brunson and Anunoby shared top scorer honors with 29 points each, while Towns and Hart added 14 apiece. Both also collected double-digit rebounds – 13 and 12.