The Boston Celtics are now down 2-0 against the New York Knicks after losing Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinals series at TD Garden on Wednesday night.
Boston led by as many as 20 points, even holding a 12-point lead entering the fourth quarter. However, they ended up losing 91-90, after a big fourth quarter from New York capped by an epic defensive play from Mikal Bridges.
After Jalen Brunson gave the Knicks the one-point lead off two free throws, the Celtics still had 12.5 seconds left to make one final play for the win. Though Jayson Tatum tried to take matters into his own hands, his attempt backfired after Bridges predicted his pass attempt and stole the ball.
Despite their inability to protect the lead, Celtics star Jaylen Brown expressed his belief that it was their offense that really doomed them.
It's worth noting that the Celtics went cold in the second half of the game, particularly in the fourth quarter when they shot 5-of-24 from the field. They were 19-of-50 from the field in the first half.
"We had physicality. We had energy on defense," Brown said of the team's defensive performance before noting, "Our offense let us down."
The Celtics were particularly horrible from distance, as they shot 10-of-40 behind the 3-point line. Brown and Derrick White were also the only members of the team to record at least 20 points.
With that said, Brown's assessment certainly has merit. Boston needs to be more efficient if it wants to beat a New York team that has been well-balanced on both ends of the floor.
Making things a bit problematic for the Celtics, though, is the fact that they now head to New York to play Games 3 and 4 against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Boston can certainly expect things to be unpleasant, as the home fans look to rally the Big Apple franchise to two more wins.
