The New York Knicks came very close to defeating one of the top three teams for the first time this season but came up just short in a hard-fought overtime battle with the Boston Celtics on Tuesday by a score of 119-117. New York falls to 50-29 while Boston improves to 59-20.
Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns was dominant against the Celtics
Karl-Anthony Towns had notably struggled against the top teams this season, but he had a dazzling performance against Boston on Tuesday. He led the way in scoring with 34 points and 14 rebounds.
Towns was the only starter with a positive plus-minus at +1. He had a significant impact in the first half with 22 points, and he picked it back up in the fourth quarter with an additional seven points. Despite his big-time effort, the Knicks were unable to prevail thanks to some clutch scoring by Boston.
New York had no answer for their old friend, Kristaps Porzingis. He finished with 34 points and shot a blistering 8-for-13 from three, including the go-ahead three-point basket with 40 seconds left in overtime.
Jayson Tatum also got his way against the Knicks, as he scored 32 points on 11-for-22 shooting, and forced overtime with his game-tying three-pointer with 2.9 seconds left. The Knicks did everything they could offensively to beat them, but they didn’t get the stops they needed throughout, which ultimately cost them.
Mikal Bridges’ struggles were amplified by a costly turnover
Mikal Bridges struggled mightily in this game. He scored just 14 points on 6-for-15 shooting from the floor and 2-for-6 from three. He had just five points through the first three quarters, and despite picking things up in the fourth, a costly turnover erased all of that.
With the Knicks down three with approximately 20 seconds left in overtime, they had a chance to tie the game. Towns took the inbounds pass from Brunson and tried to pass it to Bridges in the left corner, to which Bridges was not expecting it and dropped it out of bounds, turning the ball over and essentially ending the game.
His troubles against the top teams in the league are concerning, especially given the amount of assets that the Knicks gave up to acquire him in the offseason. A big postseason from him would erase all those struggles, but it must happen in the moments that they need him the most.
Overview
The Knicks now fall to 0-9 against the top three teams in the league, which will be something that will follow them into the playoffs. New York has another playoff team ahead of them, potentially their first-round matchup too, as they will now head to Detroit to take on the Pistons on Thursday.