NEW YORK — The Celtics, almost predictably, had the lid come off their 3-pointers after a cold-shooting start to the series. The C’s powered their way to a blowout 115-93 win over the Knicks in Game 3 of the East semifinals Saturday at Madison Square Garden. While the Celtics still trail 2-1 in the series, they put plenty more pressure on the Knicks.
As the Celtics made their first four 3-pointers, it set the early tone as the makes followed all game. The Knicks, on the flip side, were cold as their offense never found much consistency in front of what was a raucous crowd pregame. The result was a 25-point halftime lead for the Celtics.
There was no second-half collapse this time as the Celtics’ lead peaked at 31 points Saturday. The Knicks battled to get it down to a 20-point game, but their offense wasn’t good enough to hang Saturday. That was the first time this series it didn’t come down to a close game. While the Celtics cooled off some in the second half, they didn’t let the Knicks get close enough to threaten the defending champions.
Payton Pritchard was excellent off the bench as he poured in a team-high 23 points. Jaylen Brown added 19 points while Jayson Tatum finished with 22 points, though it was on 8-for-20 shooting. Karl-Anthony Towns continued to be an offensive engine with 21 points and 15 rebounds, though he battled foul trouble once again. Jalen Brunson put up 27 points and seven assists on 9-for-21 shooting.
The Celtics still have plenty of work to do as they turn to Game 4, set for 7:30 p.m. Monday at Madison Square Garden. Here are four takeaways from Boston’s win over New York:
Finally, the makes: Sometimes, life is that simple. After shooting 25% on 3-pointers in both Games 1 and 2, the 3s rained down for the best-ever shooting team. The Celtics shot 12-for-19 on 3s in the first half to sprint ahead with the lead. This time, there was no collapse as the 3s helped them out significantly. The Celtics’ process was better in that they generated open looks, leading to more makes. Boston finished Game 3 going 20-for-40 on 3-pointers at a cool 50%. The Knicks finished 5-for-25 (20%) from deep as they were the ones to go ice-cold in Game 3.
Big man watch: Kristaps Porzingis was again available Saturday, but for the second straight game, he came off the bench. He’s dealt with an illness that’s affected his stamina and ability to stay on the court. Porzingis didn’t look like he was 100% again even though he wasn’t on the injury report ahead of the game. He finished with five points, four rebounds and three blocks in his 19 minutes, suiting up for another game with relatively little playing time. The C’s didn’t need much from Porzingis in Game 3, but that’s still a factor to watch going forward.
Hacking strategy: While C’s coach Joe Mazzulla was questioned on his tactic to intentionally foul Mitchell Robinson earlier this series, he went back to it Saturday. It worked as Robinson shot just 4-for-12 from the charity stripe, including another air ball miss. One of the biggest pops from the crowd was when Robinson hit his first free throw in the first half as there wasn’t all that much to cheer about Saturday.
Comfortable on the road: There’s a reason why the Celtics set a franchise record when they won 33 games away from home this season. As they’ve also shown in the past, the C’s play well on the road and in a hostile environment. The fast start was crucial to take the juiced crowd out of the game almost immediately. There were also no groans and external pressures like there can be at home. Regardless, the Celtics got back into the series by taking hold of Game 3.
