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Knicks Make NBA Playoff History Following Game 2 vs. Celtics

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Dave Ettinger | Last updated May 7, 2025 11:26 PM ET

The New York Knicks have personified resiliency in the 2025 NBA playoffs. After winning a hard-fought, six-game-series against the Detroit Pistons in round one, the Knicks have stunned the Boston Celtics through the first two games off the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

The No. 3 seed, Knicks found a way to win Games one and two, in Boston, against the No. 2 seed, Celtics in the most improbable fashion imaginable.

The Knicks found themselves trailing by 20 points in Game 1, 72-52, with 6:03 remaining in the third quarter. After a masterful performance by Jalen Brunson, the Knicks came away with a 108-105 overtime win in Game 1.

Game 2 turned into a near carbon copy of Game 1. The Knicks trailed 73-53 with 2:11 left in the third quarter. After a lights out performance in the fourth quarter by Mikal Bridges, scoring all of his 14 points in the final 12 minutes, the Knicks stole victory from the Celtics 91-90.

The Knicks now hold a commanding 2-0 lead in the series, making NBA history in the process.

On Wednesday night, the Knicks became the first team in NBA history to win consecutive playoff games after trailing by 20 or more points.

The @nyknicks become the FIRST team in NBA history to complete a 20-point comeback in consecutive Playoff games

They're headed back home with a 2-0 series lead! pic.twitter.com/t0dniIA5Kc
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 8, 2025

The Knicks will carry their 2-0 lead back to New York where Game 3 will take place inside Madison Square Garden.

They will look to handle their business at home, hoping to make it back to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since the 1999-00 season.

While the Knicks have played solid defense, holding the Celtics to 90 points in Game 2, they can partially attribute their back-to-back, 20-point comebacks to the Celitcs' horrid 3-point shooting.

The Celtics shot exactly 25% from 3-point range in both games. They went 15-for-60 in Game 1, and 10-for-40 in Game 2. The Celtics 25 misses in Game 1 set the record for the most missed 3-pointers in a playoff game.

Game 3 will tip-off on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. EDT on ABC inside MSG.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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