A quick look at Boston’s 113-96 rout of the Knicks, giving the Celtics a commanding 3-0 lead in their first round series:
HOW THE GAME WAS WON: In Games 1 and 2, the Knicks were able to keep pace with the Celtics, having a chance to win in the final minutes in both. That wasn’t the case on Friday, as the fans at Madison Square Garden, who saw the Knicks host a playoff game for the first time since 2004, saw their team blown out. After being down by 17 points at one point in the first half, the Knicks used a more defensive oriented lineup of Jared Jeffries, Bill Walker and Shawne Williams to go into half trailing just 52-44. But the Celtics, as they have in the previous two games, put the brakes on the Knicks offense in the third quarter, outscoring them 34-19 to make the game a rout.
WHAT IT MEANS: The Knicks are on the verge of getting swept out of the playoffs, which is exactly what happened in 2004. In their defense, injuries played a factor again. Chauncey Billups missed his second game with a left knee strain. Amare Stoudemire, who missed most of Game 2 with a pulled muscle in his back, played an ineffective 33 minutes, scoring just seven points on 2-for-8 shooting from the field.
ORANGE WATCH: One game after pouring in 42 points, Carmelo Anthony struggled, scoring 15 points on 4 of 16 from the field. Anthony did grab 11 rebounds and dish out six assists, but Anthony’s +/- rating for the night was -27, which was surpassed only by Stoudemire’s -34.
STAR GAZING: Williams led the way with 17 points while Jeffries had 12 points and five rebounds. Meanwhile, Ray Allen (32) and Paul Pierce (38) torched New York all night.
WHAT’S NEXT: Game 4 will be on Sunday afternoon at 3:30 p.m.
