Boston Celtics beat the New York Knicks 101-89; win the first round playoff series
April 24th, 2011: On Sunday night at the Madison Square Garden (MSG), the defending Eastern Conference champions Boston Celtics crushed the New York Knicks 101-89, to sweep
them off the playoffs. In doing so, they also became the first team this season to conquer the best-of-seven series.
The C’s were led by Kevin Garnett. The veteran power forward scored 26 points on a 10-of-16 shooting as the Celtics dropped a bomb shell over the Knicks and left New York’s
home crowd frustrated.
The game was another demonstration of the previous three games that the Celtics had in the series. The only difference was that, this time the C’s kept the Knicks as far
off as 12 points, resulting in New York’s elimination and also kept Knicks 10-year winless playoff run at the MSG intact. Garnett, the C’s power forward dominated throughout the game and Rajon Rondo followed his footsteps. Rondo catapulted to score 21 points
to go along with 12 assists in the big win.
Glen Davis, the “Big Baby” of Boston scored 14 points and pulled out five boards in the victory.
Amar’e Stoudemire struggled from the field and finished on a 5-for-20 shooting off the field. The All-Star scored 19 points, relying mostly on nine free throws in 44 minutes
of action. Carmelo Anthony finished with a game high 32 points.
New York’s Coach Mike D’Antoni appreciated his squad for their efforts and later said, "It was all heart. He just gave it all. With him (Stoudemire) and Carmelo going forward,
the Knicks are in good shape."
Replay
Boston headed into the game on the back of a 3-0 lead over Mike D’Antoni’s Knicks. Jermaine O’Neal and Ray Allen clinched two opening shots to give their team a confident
start to the game, 4-0. Anthony soon posted a three-pointer that was followed by a layup shot that edged the Knicks over the C’s, 5-4.
New York played a well balanced first quarter until the 4:49 mark. They slowed a little after that as Paul Pierce wiped off their defences by posting three straight shots
to make it 21-15 at the 3:52 mark of opening quarter. The defensive C’s capped a six point lead over the Knicks and entered the second quarter carrying a 29-23 score.
The Celtics dominated the Knicks in the second quarter as well. With eight minutes remaining until the break, Nenad Krstic’s layup edged the Celtics over the Knicks by a
margin of 10 points, 37-27. The Knicks failed to gain any sort of momentum in the first half. They shot 28 percent from the field in the first quarter and were reduced to a meagre 15 percent in the second. Boston on the contrary, catapulted and scored sound
shots on the oncoming possessions taking 48-31at the 4:04 mark of second quarter. Choking out the Knicks, the Celtics played as aggressively as they could, bursting with a 55-38 lead into the locker room.
Things did not change much in the third quarter. Pierce pinned a three-pointer lifting his team up by 20 points, 58-38. The Knicks however fought hard, posting four three-pointers
down the stretch to cut the deficit short, leaving just a gap of 10 points between both the squads, 72-82 heading into the final quarter.
Looking onto a 10 point bridge, the Knicks started the final quarter with a better resolve. Stoudemire and Anthony posted keyed the Knicks, who came as close as 80-84 with
7:35 left on the clock. This drove the Celtics crazy, who used their experience to pin three shots in a row including a three-pointer to dominate the Knicks by eight points, 91-83. Tired of the hunt, New York gave away as many as four turnovers in the final
few minutes, making it even easier for Boston to claim a 101-89 lead at the end of game.
The Celtics now look on to Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers, awaiting which one of them meets them in the Conference Semi Finals. Miami is leading the Sixers, 3-1.
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