And another one. The New York Knicks literally replicated their game 1 victory after coming back from being down by 20 points again in game 2, upsetting Boston Celtics fans inside the TD Garden on Thursday to command a surprising 2-0 lead.
Knicks Make History in Game 2
The third-seeded Knicks found a way to beat the reigning champs in two consecutive games, in eerily similar fashion. In game 1, hope seems lost after they trailed by 20, 72-52, with just about six minutes left in the third quarter. Jalen Brunson did the unthinkable and pushed New York over that hurdle to steal game 1 in overtime.
Then came game 2, and once again, the Knicks found themselves trailing by 20 in the third, 73-53. It looked like an exact replica of their first semifinal matchup, and yet again, the Knicks went hot in the fourth quarter thanks to Mikal Bridges, who scored all of his 14 points in the final 12 minutes, and Brunson’s clutch free throws.
The New York Knicks just became the first team in playoff history to win two consecutive playoff games while being down by 20 or more points in regulation.
They’ll return to the Madison Garden for games 3 and 4 in hopes to maybe, just maybe, close out the series in four games against the 2024 champs inside the mecca of American basketball.
Boston Celtics in Big Trouble
The Celtics may not be alone in this island–with the Cavaliers also struggling against the Pacers–but they’re definitely in trouble now after giving up their home-court advantage to the Knicks, whom they went 4-0 against in the regular season.
Kristaps Porzingis isn’t 100% healthy throughout the playoffs, Jayson Tatum underperformed in game 2 (scoring 13 points on 5-of-19 shooting), and as a team, they shot a terrible 25-of-100 from behind the arc in games 1 and 2.
They were aggressive early on to secure a huge cushion, however, they couldn’t hold on to that until the final buzzer. It looked as if the C’s couldn’t remember how to play aggressively in the fourth quarter, which is very similar to the Indiana Pacers team they eliminated in last year’s Eastern Conference Finals–which is kind of ironic.
They’re going to have to bring in the big guns or face humiliation very soon.
