The Knicks had a golden opportunity to begin the season with a statement win over the Boston Celtics, but a fourth-quarter comeback was wasted in a 108-104 loss.
Here are the takeaways…
– New York opened up the regular season with a starting five of Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson, Jalen Brunson, RJ Barrett and Quentin Grimes.
– Things got off to a slow start offensively as the trio of Randle, Brunson and Barrett went a combined 1-for-12 to start the game with the Knicks falling behind early. That prompted head coach Tom Thibodeau to make his first substitution at the 6:06 mark as Josh Hart was the first off the bench coming in for Barrett.
– Immanuel Quickley then came in for Grimes with 4:47 left in the quarter, followed by Isaiah Hartenstein and Donte DiVincenzo for Robinson and Brunson almost two minutes later. But no matter the lineup, the Knicks couldn’t stop the Celtics who were hot early.
Boston shot 52.4 percent from the field (11-for-21) and 42.9 percent from deep (6-for-14) in the opening quarter compared to New York’s 26.9 percent from the field (7-for-26), despite going 2-for-3 from three, to lead 30-18 after one.
– Quickley turned things around for the Knicks to open the second quarter, draining a three-pointer for his first made-three of the season. Boston’s Derrick White countered with a three of his own, though, to give the Celtics a double-digit lead once again.
– After countless missed shots and turnovers by both teams for about a three-minute stretch, it was Quickley again who got the Knicks’ offense going. After Brunson missed from long-range, Robinson secured the offensive board and kicked it out to a wide open Quickley who sunk his second three of the quarter.
That was the start of an 8-0 run by New York that got the team to within four points with 5:47 left in the quarter. However, the offense went ice cold after that, going more than three minutes without scoring a point. The scoreless drought ended thanks to a Grimes three-pointer at the 2:16 mark.
– Fortunately for the Knicks, the Celtics were unable to really pull away during that time and New York found itself down just eight points with under two minutes left to play in the half. Brunson made his first three of the night with 80 seconds remaining and Grimes followed with a two-pointer to cut the deficit to five points.
– With 3.1 seconds left, Grimes launched a three that hit the iron but Hartenstein was there to recover the shot and make the putback as time expired and the Knicks went into halftime down 51-46.
– Boston’s lead once again grew to double digits to start the third quarter before a 13-2 New York run catapulted the Knicks back to within a point. The scoring barrage was highlighted by threes from Brunson, Grimes and Randle.
– Things got chippy after that between Hartenstein and Jaylen Brown after Hartenstein was called for a shooting foul. Brown shoved Hartenstein after the fact before players broke it up and cooler heads prevailed. Both Brown and Hartenstein received a technical foul after a referee-initiated review.
– Brown made both of his free throws to give the Celtics a three-point advantage, but then Brunson answered with a three-pointer that tied the game and sent Madison Square Garden into a frenzy.
– The Celtics followed with a 12-2 run that quieted the crowd and gave them a 78-68 lead with under two to play in the quarter. Quickley’s hot shooting continued with a three to give the Knicks some needed life, but a last-second layup by Kristaps Porzingis gave Boston an 82-73 lead after three.
– New York wasn’t fazed by the double-digit deficit and once again pulled to within one following a 10-2 run to start the fourth quarter. Before you knew it, the Knicks took their first lead of the night on Hart’s corner three (assisted by DiVincenzo) that put his team up by two at 86-84 with 8:56 left to play.
– The threes kept raining for the Knicks and their defense stymied the Celtics for much of the quarter, a complete reversal of the first quarter that saw New York get off to a slow start. Quickley, Randle and Grimes all had clutch three-pointers with the latter a four-point play that gave New York a six-point lead, its largest of the game.
– A questionable foul call on Quickley (which Thibodeau challenged but lost) sent White to the line for two and after making them both, the Celtics were down 99-95. With the Knicks up 101-99, a technical foul on Porzingis for elbowing Hartenstein in the face sent Brunson to the line to shoot a free throw.
But, as it had all game, last year’s haunts reared its ugly head and Brunson missed the free throw. In fact, New York went 14-of-26 from the charity stripe while Boston went 22-of-26, which was the difference in this one as the Celtics were able to knock down some crucial freebies late in the game and won, 108-104.
– Back at MSG after playing for the Knicks for three seasons, Porzingis had 30 points, eight rebounds and four blocks.
Highlights
What’s next
The Knicks season continues on Friday, Oct. 27 at 7:30 p.m. when they take on the Atlanta Hawks in their first road game of the year.