Jaylen Brown scored 20 points for the Celtics, who lost leading scorer Jayson Tatum to a ruptured Achilles tendon in Game 4 but believed they still had enough to get it back to Boston for Game 7 and keep their title defense alive.
It was quickly clear that wasn’t happening.
The Celtics led by at least 14 in each of the first five games, but this time the Knicks started fast and kept pouring it on until Boston coach Joe Mazzulla began pulling his starters in the third quarter after the deficit reached 41 points.
The Knicks scored the first seven points of the second quarter to make it 33-20. New York blew it open with a 13-3 run that made it 49-27, a surge highlighted by 6-foot-1 guard Deuce McBride’s chasedown block of Derrick White’s shot that led to Josh Hart’s second straight basket while being fouled.
Ben Stiller and Lenny Kravitz shared a handshake and hug afterward along celebrity row, where the A-listers were standing and cheering much of the night, the same as the fans sitting near the top of the arena.
The Knicks led 64-37 at halftime, a 27-point lead that matched their biggest in a playoff game in the shot-clock era. They led the Lakers 69-42 in Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals, when Willis Reed’s return from injury sparked the Knicks to their first NBA title.
There was another three years later, but the Knicks have been shut out since and it didn’t appear this would be the year that could end after the Knicks were a combined 0-8 against Cleveland and Boston, the two teams that finished above them in the East.
But they won’t have to worry about the Cavaliers and completely turned things around against the Celtics, overcoming 20-point deficits in the second halves of both games in Boston to open the series.
Hart finished with 10 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for the Knicks.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
Want great stories delivered right to your inbox?Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
