For the second consecutive match, the New York Knicks found themselves in a hole that the Boston Celtics rarely left the teams of this season.
The Knicks have again found a way – almost in the same way, in fact – to remove the improbable. And now there are two victories to bring the champions out of the playoffs.
Mikal Bridges sealed another 20-point return with his second consecutive end-of-match flight and the Knicks again stun the Celtics on Wednesday evening, winning 91-90 for a 2-0 lead in the semi-finals of the Eastern Conference.
Jalen Brunson scored 17 points for New York and made two free throws with 12.7 seconds to play for an advance of 91-90. Jayson Tatum could not arrive on the rim and the bridges moved to beat the ball and recover it.
Bridges also scored his 14 points in the fourth quarter. Josh Hart collected 23 points and Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds for the Knicks, who will host match 3 on Saturday.
“When we get home, we realize the opportunity we have. We just have to stay locked up,” said Brunson.
Jaylen Brown and Derrick White scored 20 points each for the Celtics, which were 10 for 40 on a three -point beach after reaching 15 for 60 in match 1.
Tatum was limited to 13 points on a shot of 5 for 19 for the Celtics, which lasted more than eight minutes without a basket in the fourth quarter.
Teams that win the first two games in a series of seven best on the road win the 85.7% of the time series. The Knicks took the opener when Bridges stole the ball in Brown with a second to play in overtime.
“Possibility to show what we are made,” said Brown about a Boston team that swept new York 4-0 in the regular season.
“We have to answer.”
Kristaps Porzingis did not start after stopping the second half of match 1 with a disease. He got out of the bench for the fifth time in his NBA career and ended with eight points and four rebounds in 14 minutes.
All eyes were on the Celtics attack after missing a 45 -point NBA record in their defeat of match 1. They went 24 for 54 from two points on Wednesday.
Despite their shooting difficulties, the Celtics found a certain traction at the end of the third quarter, using a sequence of 16-6 – main by their efforts on the defensive – to transform an advance of 10 points into an advantage of 73-53 at the end of the period.
It was 84-68 after the three points of Payton taken with 8:40 play, but the Celtics would not make another basket before the Dunk of Driving Tatum with 18.5 seconds remaining.
New York cut it to 86-82 on a Hart float before the three-point game of Towns cut it to 86-85. Tatum missed a rider and Brunson made an 18 feet to put New York in front.
A Brown sweater has left the edge of Boston’s next trip on the ground. Brunson then found a track in the basket and dropped in a lay-up to do so 89-86.
Tatum connected to a pair of free throws, then recovered it after a failure in New York which moved out of the limits with 24.2 seconds to make.
By dragging 89-88, Tatum pushed the ball into the front ground and led easily in front of Mitchell Robinson for a dunk to put the Celtics in front.
Brunson was dirty and connected to the two free throws.
