playoff Archives

Boston Too Strong For New York – A Game 6 Is On The Schedule

There was hope for New York fans as the Knicks went up by 11 points early in the first quarter of game 5, but it turned out to be a false sense of security as the Boston Celtics just refused to let their season come to an end on the Garden floor. And at the end of the first quarter, that 11 point cushion quickly evaporated resulting in a 22 – 20 lead for New York.

And the evaporation continued with Boston playing their best basketball since this series started. Led by Paul Pierce and Jason Terry in the second quarter, Boston scored 25 points, while keeping the Knicks to only 17.

At halftime, Boston led 45 – 37.

It was a three-point expedition and Pierce was throwing them up all over the place. At one point, it seemed as if the Knicks players were all spectators, sitting on the bench as Pierce put up yet another uncontested three pointer. But Paul Pierce was not the only dagger in the Knicks sides, oh no. The Refs made some calls that had everyone scratching their heads. Reminded me of the NFL lockout when the temporary referees were the laughing-stock of all of sports.

But back to basketball.

Carmelo Anthony did not produce the MVP type game everyone expected. He played 45 minutes, shooting a dismal 8 of 24 field goals for a very quiet 22 points. J. Smith, the missing element in the Knicks loss in Boston was on the court for game 5, but did not produce the Sixth Man of the year caliber game either. Plagued by the constant whistle by the referees, Smith played a total of 36 minutes, shooting a horrendous 3 for 14 field goals, getting only 14 points for his troubles. At one point, he went took 11 straight shots, making zero.

Boston on the other hand couldn’t miss. They were led by J. Green with 18 points, followed by B. Bass who shot 6 of 7 field goals, in his 40 minutes of play. Bass got 17 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Jason Terry also had 17 followed by Pierce and Garnett with 16 each.

Final score in the game was Boston 92, Knicks 86. The series now heads back to Boston for game 6 on Friday. No other NBA team has come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a series, but Boston is definitely giving it their best shot.

New York Knicks: “Let Defence Be Your Best Offence”

“Let defence be your best offence.” That was said by Walt Clyde Frazier during the fourth quarter of the Knicks/Boston playoff game tonight, as New York scored a three off a steals from Boston. The three pointer in the final 10 minutes of the game extended the Knicks lead by 21 points, paving the way for what would eventually be a commanding win by New York.

Game 3 of the first round against Boston was played in Boston. But having the home court advantage turned out to be no advantage for Boston, as New York played one of the best defensive games they’ve played in a long time. The game ended with the Knicks stealing the ball from Boston a total of 14 times, and their suffocating defense caused Boston to turn the ball over 17 times.

The final score was Knicks 90, Boston 76. The game really wasn’t as close as the score suggests.

Carmelo Anthony led the scoring for the Knicks with another great effort, putting up 26 points in 37 minutes. Point guard Felton had an all round productive game, scoring 15 points in 35 minutes of play. He also had 2 rebounds, 10 assists and just 3 turnovers. J. Smith also had 15 points, but received a flagrant Type 2 foul and received an automatic ejection after throwing an elbow at Boston’s Jason Terry. Smith’s absence resulted in a four point play for Boston, but shots by Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler kept Boston at bay.

For Boston, J. Green led the team with 21 points in 44 minutes. Paul Pierce had 17 followed by J. Terry with 14.

New York now leads the series 3-0, with game 4 scheduled for Sunday. In the history of the NBA, no team has ever come back from being down 3 games to win a series, so chances that the Knicks will win this series are very high. Game 4 will be played in Boston at 1PM Eastern.