By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
And just like that, the Boston Celtics carried on with their longest winning streak of the ongoing NBA regular season after dumping the New York Knicks, 116-102, on February 25, 2024.
Unlike their sluggish start against the Chicago Bulls three days ago where they clinched their seventh straight victory, the Celtics were in control the whole game against the banged-up Knicks squad.
Entering the matchup without superstar Julius Randle, OG Anunoby, and main center Mitchell Robinson, the Knicks got stomped in the paint area and allowed the Celtics to score 58 points in the shaded lane.
With little resistance in their drives to the basket, the Celtics continued to bully the thin New York front court to run away with another convincing victory.
The Celtics immediately imposed their will from the get-go led by star shooting guard Jaylen Brown who quickly ignited Boston with 10 points in just 10 minutes.
Brown, who is coming off a hot-shooting performance against the Bulls and the Wizards, resumed his fine play and top-scored the Celtics with 30 points built from an efficient 13/24 shooting from the field.
Jalen Brunson did what he could for the Knicks after dropping 34 points and nine assists but the balanced Boston attack proved to be too much to handle.
It was in the third quarter that the Celtics started to pull away after establishing a 20-point lead. The Knicks tried to claw their way back after trimming their deficit to just nine points at the start of the final frame but another counter-run from Boston officially closed New York’s door.
Kristaps Porzingis bucked an error-plagued first half and turned it up in the last two quarters to wrap up the win with 22 points, four rebounds, and four dimes.
Jayson Tatum also contributed to the win with a comprehensive performance of 19 points, six rebounds, six assists, two steals, and a block.
The Celtics will look to maintain their winning momentum on February 28, 2024, against the formidable Philadelphia 76ers.
