Knicks shock Celtics in OT, take Game 1 with wild comeback and clutch defense

No one saw this coming. Not after an 0-4 regular season record against the Celtics. Not after being written off before the series even began. But the Knicks didn’t care about the narrative. They flipped the script in a stunning 108-105 overtime win in Boston to steal Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals and remind everyone that the playoffs are a different beast.

Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby led the way with 29 points apiece, but it was Mikal Bridges—clocking a marathon 51 minutes—who delivered the defensive moment of the night. With just 3 seconds left in overtime and Boston trailing by three, Jaylen Brown had the ball and a chance to send the game to double OT. Bridges stripped him clean and tossed the ball into the air as time expired. Ballgame.

It was a finish that capped off one of the most thrilling comebacks in franchise history. Down 75-55 late in the third quarter, the Knicks looked all but buried. But then Anunoby caught fire—draining back-to-back threes to spark a 20-6 run that cut the deficit to single digits. The third quarter closed with the Knicks trailing 84-75, and the fourth opened with an 11-2 blitz, capped by an Anunoby dunk that tied the game at 86.

From there, it was a war. Brunson nailed back-to-back threes to give the Knicks a 97-91 lead, and the Garden crowd started to stir. Boston fought back to force overtime, and the Knicks nearly ended it in regulation when Brunson blew by Al Horford but watched his layup roll off the rim.

In overtime, New York struck first and hard—scoring the first six points, including a Karl-Anthony Towns tip-in that made it 108-102 with under two minutes to go. That would be their final basket. But it was enough.

Brown hit a three to cut it to 108-105 with 1:16 left, and the Celtics had one last chance after a scare when Towns fouled Brown on a late three-point attempt. Thankfully for the Knicks, the refs ruled it occurred before the shot. Boston had to inbound, and that’s when Bridges made the defining steal of the night.

“I was telling Cam Payne over there, that I was just watching his eyes. I’m a football guy. I’m just watching his eyes and following where the ball is at, and trying to get my hands up as soon as I see the ball. Because we’re up by three, so we’re trying to foul.”

– Mikal Bridges

Bridges also had another massive swipe earlier in OT, which led to an Anunoby and-one dunk in transition—one of the game’s signature momentum swings.

Anunoby’s second half was monstrous—20 of his 29 came after halftime, and New York is now 5-0 when he scores 25 or more. Towns finished with a 14-point, 13-rebound double-double. Josh Hart brought his usual grit with 14 points and 11 boards.

For Boston, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum scored 23 each, while Derrick White added 19. Kristaps Porzingis was held scoreless in just 13 minutes before leaving with an illness and did not return after halftime. The Celtics also made a bit of the wrong kind of history—missing 45 threes (15-of-60), a new franchise record for futility from beyond the arc.

The Knicks had their own issues—particularly at the free-throw line, where they went just 17-of-31. Much of that stemmed from Boston’s hack-a-Robinson strategy. Mitchell Robinson shot 3-of-10 from the stripe, but the tactic didn’t pay off in the end.

Game 2 is set for Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m., and the pressure now shifts squarely to the Celtics. The Knicks, doubted and dismissed all year against this team, just threw the first haymaker of the series.