The Knicks grew accustomed to facing big deficits against the Celtics this season.
New York faced another one to open its Eastern Conference semifinal matchup against the defending NBA champions. This time, the Knicks found a way to overcome it.
Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby each scored 29 points before Mikal Bridges stole the ball from Jaylen Brown with a second left in overtime, and the Knicks stunned Boston 108-105 in Game 1 of their series on Monday night.
Karl-Anthony Towns added 14 points and 13 rebounds for New York, which lost all four games against its longtime rival during the regular season and trailed by 20 points in the second half of this game.
“We told each other just keep believing. Just keep fighting and sticking together, and keep chipping away. There wasn’t going to be a 20-point shot,” Brunson said.
Jayson Tatum and Brown both had 23 points for the Celtics, who had an NBA playoff-record 45 missed 3-pointers to blow a game they appeared to have in control. Derrick White added 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Jrue Holiday returned to the starting lineup after a strained right hamstring caused him to miss the final three games of Boston’s first-round series against Orlando. He finished with 16 points in 39 minutes, but center Kristaps Porzingis played only 13 minutes and didn’t return after halftime because of an illness.
Game 2 is Wednesday night.
Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said missing Porzingis impacted the Celtics’ approach.
“Obviously it impacts the game with his ability on both ends of the floor,“ Mazzulla said. ”It’s no excuse. We had plenty of opportunities. … Hopefully he’s ready for Game 2.”
