Despite a strong comeback by Kemba Walker against his ex-team, the Boston Celtics narrowly prevailed against the New York Knicks in a varied game. In addition to the star duo, a reservist near Boston played a prominent role, while Walker was strongly supported by another former Celt.
New York Knicks (13-17) – Boston Celtics (15-15) 107:114 (BOXSCORE)
Walker (29 points, 8/20 FG, 6 rebounds) returned to the Knicks’ starting five after just under a month, which included Derrick Rose (ankle). Together with Evan Fournier (32, 13/24 FG) he was responsible for 61 of the 107 Knicks points. Since apart from the inefficient Julius Randle (20, 6/19 FG, 9 rebounds) and Alec Burks (19), no New Yorker scored more than 4 points, it should not be enough.
The Knicks scored only 47 points in the first half, but reported strong back with 41 points in the third quarter, which resulted in the lead. However, the Celtics scored better from the field and from the triple line and used the Knicks turnover for 21 points (NY: 9). Ultimately, the discrepancy between the free throws (13/17 vs. 24/30) was of no consequence for the home side.
At Boston, alongside the usual suspects Jayson Tatum (25, 9/24 FG, 3/13 3FG, 9 rebounds) and Jaylen Brown (23, 8/21 FG) Josh Richardson played in the foreground. From the bank he contributed 27 points (9/14 FG), including numerous important offensive actions in the final quarter as well as the dagger from the corner. Payton Pritchard also convinced (16, 6/10), Robert Williams delivered 15 counters and 8 boards.
Walker returns strong – Celtics win thanks to Richardson
After a few minutes, Walker was at 5 after a drive, followed by a successful three, but the Celts got off to a better start, with Jaylen Brown scoring 12 of the first 21 points. After a quarter there was a comfortable 14-point lead, and Jayson Tatum had already scored two-digit points. The lousy numbers at the Knicks: 0 assists, 1/8 from downtown.
The Celtics’ lead did not change until the break, with Payton Pritchard and Josh Richardson providing valuable support from the bank. In the Knicks, the reservists had not yet contributed a single point, after all, Evan Fournier (17) was convincing. He did the same after the break, thanks to a 15-2 start, the Knicks were quickly back within striking distance. Nerlens Noel equalized a short time later, Tatum and Walker exchanged threesomes, before the comebacker took care of the first tour of the evening with another triple. When the score was 88:86, it went into the final quarter.
Richardson put a big exclamation mark there. 8 of the first 10 points of the Celtics went to his account, suddenly the hosts were in front with 5. With a three-point game, Tatum put on +7, the quarter-spanning run was 18: 8. Burks’ third three created tension again, Robert Williams on the other hand scored after a strong offensive rebound. Fournier turned -5, Walker fouled and Tatum grabbed his own missed throw for tip-in. Randle scored with a foul, but his next degree was too much and Richardson put the lid on from the corner.
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