It's quite sad that it's come to this but the Celtics (26-26 overall, 16-10 home) squeaking by the Knicks (25-27 overall, 11-17 away) 101-99 tonight at the TD Garden was nevertheless a very notable result in the bottom of the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Boston trailed 73-70 going into the fourth quarter but thanks to guard Marcus Smart (17 points, 9 assists) who scored 14 points in the final stanza, they made winning plays for a change rather than falling apart like you read about. Shooting guard Jaylen Brown (game-high 32 points, 10 rebounds, 2 steals) was the best player on the floor while swingman Jayson Tatum nearly had a triple double (25 points, 10 rebounds, 8 turnovers) but not of the variety that you're looking for.
These mediocre clubs were tied in the standings coming into this evening so now the C's are a game up on the Knicks for seventh-place in the East. The crazy part is that with the win, Boston only trails fourth-place Charlotte (26-24) and fifth-place Atlanta (27-25) by a game. Can you feel the excitement? What a time to be alive! New York's lone All-Star power forward Julius Randle (22 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals) was held to 9-for-23 shooting from the field. Shooting guard RJ Barrett (team-high 29 points, 5 rebounds) was 6-of-6 on 3-pointers. The only other Knick to score in double-figures was the ghost of point guard Derrick Rose who scored 11 points off the bench.
The education of center Robert Williams continued as he bounced back from fouling out last night against Philadelphia (35-16) by grabbing 10 rebounds and blocking two shots. I made a snide comment about center Tristan Thompson's extended absence yesterday (due to Covid-19) but the joke is on me because he returned for the first time since March 14 and was a difference-maker off the bench for the C's. In 22 minutes, he had seven points, eight rebounds and three blocks. For a team that is really lacking in decent big guys, Thompson's return was much needed. Please stay home Tristan and stop going out (where the hell has he been frequenting in the pandemic?) so much!
This game got off to a slow as Boston led 21-19 after the sleepy first quarter. Both offenses perked up in the second quarter as New York outscored them by one point (27-26) so the Celts were up by one point at halftime (47-46). The Knicks took the third quarter by four points (27-23) leaving the Green to be the heroes in the final 12 minutes. Boston had 14 more rebounds than New York (53-39) including 11 more defensive boards (16-5). The C's blocked three more shots (7-4), scored 10 more points in the paint (42-32) and they posted 13 more second chance points (20-7) than the Knicks.
The Celtics have won three out of their last four games but they are still only 3-3 in the first six games of this season-high seven-game homestand. They have a great opportunity to end it on a winning note as they host the Timberwolves (13-39 overall, 5-22 road) aka the worst team in the NBA on Friday (7:30, NBC Sports Boston). As they have proven over and over again this season, no opponent is an automatic victory for the Celts therefore they better take Minnesota seriously-as wretched as they are in 2021. Be aware that center Karl-Anthony Towns and rookie No. 1 pick Anthony Edwards are each liable to go off for the T-Wolves.
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