Knicks watch Celtics hit 27 threes in loss at MSG
Julius Randle #30 of the Knicks reacts late during the fourth quarter against the Boston Celtics at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022 in New York City. Credit: Jim McIsaac
During a break in the action at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night, a fan connected on a halfcourt shot, banking it in to collect a new car, along with $1,000. He raced around the court, chest-bumping RJ Barrett and hugging Julius Randle.
It was a nice prize, but hardly the only long-range shooting the Knicks were left to stare at.
Playing without their top two centers, the Boston Celtics resorted to an attack from outside the arc, connecting on a franchise-record 27 three-point field goals to beat the Knicks, 133-118.
The 27 threes (in 51 attempts) were the most the Knicks have ever surrendered in a game, breaking the record of 26 recorded by the Bucks last November at the Garden.
“We’ve got to talk,” said Jalen Brunson, who had 22 points and 10 assists. “We’ve got to communicate better. All of our problems, most problems, just stem from that lack of communication. So the intent is there, everything is there. We’ve just got to talk it out and be on the same page.”
The Knicks were missing two of their defensive-minded starters. Mitchell Robinson, who suffered a sprained right knee Friday night, will be reevaluated in seven to 10 days. Quentin Grimes, who was inserted in the starting lineup for the first time this season Friday, was ruled out for this game with a return of the left foot soreness that had sidelined him for the first six games of the season.
That left coach Tom Thibodeau mixing and matching rotations for a second straight day. He put Cam Reddish in the starting lineup in place of Grimes rather than returning Evan Fournier to the role he had held until Friday. He also elevated backup center Isaiah Hartenstein to a starting role in place of Robinson.
It’s hard to imagine the missing Knicks would have made a difference. Jaylen Brown (30 points) and Jayson Tatum (26) led the way with six three-pointers apiece and Sam Hauser came off the bench to connect on five. All nine of the Celtics who played in the game had at least one three-pointer. Former Knick Noah Vonleh connected in the fourth quarter, becoming the last Celtic on the board.
“I don’t want to make an excuse for us because we have to play better, and as I told the team, we’ll look at the film and we’ll make our corrections,” Thibodeau said. “But going into tonight, I think we had the best defensive field goal percentage, we were third in defending the three, so we didn’t defend it well. Some of the mistakes we made are very correctable, and so just have to come back with more of a determination to fix it and stay together and work through it.”
The Knicks (4-5) shot well themselves, connecting on 51.1% overall and 40.7% from three-point range, but they couldn’t keep up with Boston (6-3).
Randle finished with 29 points and nine rebounds, but Obi Toppin struggled through a 3-for-9 shooting night (1-for-5 from beyond the arc).
The Celtics shot 21-for-41 from three-point range in the first three quarters but led only 101-96.
“Teams are going to get hot,” said Barrett, who had 27 points. “You play 82 games, it’s bound to happen at some point. Just got to go back to taking the three out and we’ll be all right.”
Notes & quotes: Fans at Friday’s game spotted a heated argument between Toppin and assistant coach Rick Brunson. The team confirmed it, noting that it was talked out after the game. Brunson worked with Toppin before the Knicks drafted him. ”That’s my family,” Toppin said. “I love Rick. It’s just basketball. Competitive. You see what happened when he did that. It got me going. He knows that about me. Me and him will always have love for each other. Nothing serious.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
