The New York Knicks overcame a 20-point deficit and rallied to defeat the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Everything seemed to be going in the Celtics' favor on the way to the 20-point lead, but the energy changed quickly.
The Celtics had built that big lead after Karl-Anthony Towns got into early foul trouble and was forced to play Mitchell Robinson.
Kendrick Perkins sends Celtics warning
The Celtics opted to go with the "Hack-a-Robinson" in this case, which worked.
After Kristaps Porzingis and Sam Hauser left with injuries, they simply didn't have the bodies, nor the fouls to give to keep doing it.
The Knicks were also fortunate in the number of contested three-pointers the Celtics settled for early in the shot clock.
Former Celtics center Kendrick Perkins delivered a major warning to the Celtics on First Take Tuesday.
"If [the Celtics] go down 0-2 this series is over with," Perkins said. "We don't even know the status of [Porzingis]. At this point, I don't even care because he's basically been a no-show in this postseason thus far."
Perhaps most impressive, they wiped away much of the deficit with star Jalen Brunson on the bench.
Once he came back in, he lived up to his status as the NBA's Clutch Player of the Year. He scored 11 points in the fourth quarter, but it's the two he didn't get on a missed layup with two seconds left that would've won the game.
Instead, they went to overtime and pulled out the win. Mikal Bridges made a crucial three-pointer with 2:30 to go after having shot 2-for-12 to that point.
OG Anunoby was perhaps the best player on both ends of the floor, guarding both Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown at times. He and Brunson tied for a game-high 29 points.
The Knicks will look to take a 2-0 lead when they face the Celtics in Game 2 at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
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