NBA
Celtics call late loss ‘inexcusable’ as Knicks rally again from a 20-point deficit
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All posts by Antonio KozlowUpdated6 hours ago on May 08, 2025
Nobody inside the Boston camp seem to really understands how they got to this point. The reigning champions are now trailing 0-2 in their Eastern Conference semifinal matchup against the Knicks, after blowing yet another 20-point lead on Wednesday night.
Now that New York took a 91-90 victory in Game 2, the Massachusetts club are looking for answers. “Two games we’re up 20 points somehow end up not with wins is inexcusable,” said Celtics star Jaylen Brown. “Obviously being down two, it sucks.”
Believe it or not, last night the Manhattan team didn’t take their first lead of the contest until they were four minutes remaining to the final buzzer. In fact, in the past two games, they’ve only led the scoreboard for 12 minutes in total, and now lead the series with two victories.
“They made every play,” said coach Joe Mazzulla about their rivals, after his team didn’t allow any points off turnovers in the fourth quarter. “I thought we generated some good looks and then I thought we had some live-ball turnovers and they took advantage of it, so they made the necessary plays to win.”
Boston failed to make 14 of their last 15 shots last night, and were outscored 23-6 in the final eight minutes of Game 2. “We put ourselves in position and we just didn’t make the plays,” Mazzulla insisted, as his squad has failed to score from beyond the arc with only 4-of-26 in the two fourth quarters.
“I don’t have the answer honestly, I don’t have the answer,” said Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis. “Just a little bit of execution here and there. There’s a couple missed shots here and there. A couple things go their way and it just adds up and it’s this result.”
Brown is aware he’s missed when his team needs him the most, after hitting 20 points but only 1-of-7 shooting in the second half. “(It’s) a bunch of stuff that we can control,” Jaylen expressed postgame. “I feel like we played a little bit fast and sped up a little antsy. Just it’s a rough night.”
