BOSTON — The Celtics had one last gasp to steal Game 2 over the Knicks despite everything that went wrong. But as Mikal Bridges stole the ball from Jayson Tatum as time expired, that was it. Another stunned TD Garden crowd filed for the exits while the reigning champion Celtics fell into a 2-0 series hole to the Knicks after a 91-90 loss.
Now, the C’s are battling history in more ways than one if they want to keep this playoff run alive. Road teams who have taken a 2-0 series lead in a best-of-seven series have gone on to win 30 out of 35 times, per the TNT broadcast, which translates to an 85.7% win percentage. So that’s a major uphill battle for the Celtics, though they will have a chance to make up ground starting in Game 3 in New York.
“Being down 0-2 sucks, but we’ve got a great room and if I had to select any guys to get it done, it’s the group that we have in our locker room,” Jaylen Brown said. “We’ve just gotta come out a little bit more poised, take a deep breath, convert our opportunities. We missed layups, easy baskets. And take advantage. Two games we were up 20 points and somehow we come out not with wins. It’s inexcusable. But we’re going to learn from it. We’re going to respond.”
There’s also another recent trend the Celtics are looking to overcome. The past five reigning champions have failed to advance past the second round the following playoffs. There’s a number of reasons for why that’s the case, but the end result has all been the same.
In recent history, the 2023 champs Nuggets lost to the Timberwolves 4-3 in the 2024 West semifinals. The 2022 champs Warriors lost to the Lakers 4-2 in the 2023 West semifinals. The 2021 champs Bucks lost to the Celtics 4-3 in the 2022 East semifinals. That doesn’t necessarily mean anything for the C’s in present day, but that’s another thing to keep an eye on.
The way in which the Celtics lost also leaves a sour taste. They were up by 20 points midway through the third quarter of both games. But they collapsed down the stretch as they missed droves of open 3-pointers. On the other side, the Knicks had guys step up and make the winning plays to hand the defending champs two straight losses.
It’s the first time since the 2023 East Finals that the Celtics are facing a 2-0 series deficit. That series is well-known as the C’s fell behind 3-0, forced a Game 7 but an early Jayson Tatum ankle sprain doomed their chances to advance. It’s also the first time since 2023 the Celtics have lost more than one game in a playoff series; they went 16-3 last year on their way to the 2024 NBA title.
All the Celtics can do now is regroup and head to New York. They came into the East semifinals as heavy favorites, but after dropping two straight games, it’ll be a tough climb. Fortunately, the C’s have had success on the road, including a franchise record 33 road victories during the regular season. But all they can do is look at it one game at a time, and that starts with Game 3, set for 3:30 p.m. Saturday in New York.
“In a way, it takes some of the pressure off of us,” Kristaps Porzingis said. “If you check the odds, maybe the Knicks are the favorites now to win. We were expected to win. For us to be in this hole right now, with our backs against the wall, we have nothing to lose. We gotta go out there, leave it all out on the floor. And again, I think it’s a lot of basketball left to be played and we’ll see where it goes.”
