Knicks Off & Running vs. Celtics

The New York Knicks are off and running in the Eastern Conference Semifinals after a thrilling, come-from-behind 108-105 overtime victory over the Boston Celtics, and the excitement in New York is palpable.

New York trailed by as many as 20 points in the third quarter, before OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, and Jalen Brunson started knocking down shots to bring the Knicks back to within nine points by the end of the quarter.

By the fourth quarter, the Knicks turned the intensity up a notch. Miles McBride drilled a 23-foot jumper,r and Karl Anthony-Towns nailed a bucket to cut the deficit down to four points. You could feel the Boston Crowd at the TD Garden starting to get a little nervous.

After Jayson Tatum missed a step-back jumper that would have shut down the Knicks' momentum, Anunoby pressed the pedal to the metal when he knocked down a three-pointer from the far corner to cut the deficit to a single point, 84-83.

Finally, Jalen Brunson's 23-foot jumper tied the proceeding at 89 with 5:55 to go. Just like that, New York had orchestrated a 20-point swing. From down 72-52 with a little over nine minutes to go in the third quarter, the Knicks had rallied off a 37-17 run.

The Celtics' offense went completely silent. At one point, they missed a total of five shots as the Knicks tied the game and took the lead on Brunson's right hand.

The Knicks' MVP hit a pair of free throws to tie the game at 91, and finally connected on back-to-back three-pointers from the top of the key that sent Knicks fans from up and down the I-95 corridor jumping for joy as New York grabbed a 97-91 lead.

Even when Boston recovered and rallied behind a suddenly surging Derrick White, the Knicks had an answer. None bigger than Anunoby's three-pointer that put the Knicks up 100-98 with seconds to go in regulation.

And to think we almost didn't need OT were it not for a missed open layup by Brunson that rimmed out with 2.1 seconds to go.

But the Knicks didn't let that missed open shot get them down. Even with Brunson tiring after carrying the night with 29 points, his teammates stepped up big time. Anunoby's slam dunk at the 3:25 mark of OT, gave the Knicks a 102-100 lead and much-needed life.

Next, Bridges drilled a three-pointer to extend the lead to six, and Karl Anthony Towns added a tip-in for good measure to make it 108-102. The Celtics were cooked.

And what a job by Bridges to rip the ball out of the hands of Jaylen Brown with just 0.6 of a second to play to win it.

If Brunson was the guy that carried the Knicks in Game 6 of the quarterfinals against Detroit, it was everyone else, especially Anunoby and Bridges, who carried the Knicks in Game 1 of the semis.

KNICKS CRITICS?

S,o how about those Knicks haters? Fox Sports Radio's own Colin Cowherd called the Knicks' win "Meaningless."

Ok, bud. We'll see about that.

Game 2 is on Wednesday.