The energy in Madison Square Garden was basically vibrating off the walls. Everyone expected a knockout blow. After the New York Knicks swiped the first two games of the 2025 Eastern Conference Semifinals in Boston, the narrative was set. The "Nova Knicks" were too gritty, too tough, and Jalen Brunson was simply inevitable. But basketball is a game of math as much as heart, and in Knicks vs Celtics Game 3, the math finally caught up to New York.
Boston won. They didn't just win; they dismantled the Knicks 115-93.
Honestly, it was a shooting clinic that felt personal. Before this game, the Celtics had been throwing bricks from the perimeter, shooting a miserable 25% from deep over the first two matches. Then, Saturday afternoon happened. Joe Mazzulla’s squad walked into the world's most famous arena and decided they weren't going home down 0-3. They hit 20 three-pointers. You read that right. Twenty.
The Shooting Variance That Broke the Garden
If you want to understand why Knicks vs Celtics Game 3 looked so different from the first two, you have to look at the arc. Boston went 20-for-40 from three. That’s a 50% clip. When a team that shoots that much volume starts hitting half of them, you’re basically cooked.
The Knicks? They went 5-for-25.
That is a 45-point difference from the three-point line alone. It’s hard to win a middle school game with that disparity, let alone a playoff game against the defending champs. Derrick White started the avalanche, but it was Payton Pritchard who really twisted the knife. Pritchard poured in 23 points off the bench, looking like the best player on the floor for long stretches. He was dancing on defenders and hitting step-backs that silenced a crowd that had spent the last week planning a parade.
Key Performers and Statistical Outliers
- Payton Pritchard (Celtics): 23 points, 5-of-10 from three. He outscored the Knicks' entire bench by himself for most of the night.
- Jalen Brunson (Knicks): 27 points, but it was a hard-earned 27. The Celtics threw waves of defenders at him—White, Brown, even Tatum—forcing him into a 9-of-21 shooting night.
- Jayson Tatum (Celtics): 22 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists. He didn't need to be a hero because the system worked.
- Karl-Anthony Towns (Knicks): 21 points and 11 rebounds. KAT tried to keep them afloat early, but the defensive rotations were just a step slow.
The lead ballooned to 20 in the second quarter. It never really got close again. Tom Thibodeau is known for many things, but "accepting a blowout" isn't one of them. Yet, by the middle of the fourth, even he had to pull the starters. The Garden went from a mosh pit to a library in about two hours.
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Why the Celtics Strategy Finally Clicked
For two games, the Knicks' defense was a masterclass in "help and recover." They dared Boston to beat them from deep, gambling that the law of averages would stay on their side. In Knicks vs Celtics Game 3, that gamble went bust.
Boston stopped settling for contested, late-clock heaves. They moved the ball. The "drive-and-kick" was working to perfection. Jaylen Brown, who finished with 19 points, was particularly effective at drawing two defenders and finding the open man in the corner. When Kristaps Porzingis—returning from an illness—was on the floor, he provided just enough of a vertical threat to keep the Knicks' rim protectors honest.
New York looked tired. Josh Hart, who has basically lived on the court this postseason, finally looked human. He finished with only 10 points and didn't have that usual "maniac energy" on the offensive glass. When Hart isn't tracking down every loose ball, the Knicks lose their identity. They become a team that relies too heavily on Brunson's brilliance, and Boston is too talented to let one man beat them four times in a row.
The Historical Context of the Blowout
It’s worth noting that this 22-point loss tied for the largest home playoff defeat in Knicks history. That stings. But the playoffs are about short memories. You've got to flush it. In 1972, the Knicks lost Game 3 to the Celtics in the Conference Finals, but they still moved on to the Finals.
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The Celtics were desperate. A 0-2 deficit is a hole; a 0-3 deficit is a grave. No team in NBA history has ever come back from 0-3. Boston played with the frantic energy of a team that knew their season was on the line. They were first to every 50/50 ball. They were louder on the bench. They were simply better.
What Most People Get Wrong About This Series
The "instant reaction" crowd will tell you the Knicks are in trouble. They'll say the Celtics have "figured them out." Honestly? That’s probably a stretch.
The Knicks still lead the series 2-1. They still have home-court advantage for Game 4. The shooting variance we saw in Knicks vs Celtics Game 3 is exactly that—variance. It is highly unlikely Boston hits 50% of their threes again, just as it’s unlikely New York hits only 20% of theirs.
The real story isn't the shooting; it's the health. OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges played heavy minutes again, and you could see the fatigue in their legs during the third-quarter closeouts. If Thibs doesn't find a way to trust his bench for even five more minutes a game, the Knicks might run out of gas before the finish line.
Actionable Takeaways for Game 4
If you're watching the next game, keep your eyes on these specific tactical shifts:
- The Drop Coverage: Watch how KAT and Mitchell Robinson defend the pick-and-roll. If they continue to "drop," Boston will keep taking those practice-range threes. Expect the Knicks to "blitz" or "hedge" more to get the ball out of the guards' hands.
- The Bench Production: Miles McBride needs to be more than a decoy. New York needs a spark plug to match Pritchard's impact.
- Brunson's Usage: Look for Jalen to hunt for fouls early. If he can get Derrick White or Jrue Holiday into foul trouble, it changes the entire geometry of the Celtics' defense.
- The Pace: The Knicks want a mud fight. The Celtics want a track meet. Whoever dictates the tempo in the first six minutes usually wins the quarter.
The Knicks are a win away from a 3-1 lead, which is a commanding position. But if they play with the same defensive apathy they showed in the second quarter of Game 3, this series is going back to Boston tied. The Garden will be rocking again for Game 4, and you can bet the Knicks won't let another 20-point lead happen on their floor without a fight.