Thursday\u2019s 112-106 victory over the Celtics<\/a> \u2014 burying his open and contested looks to the delight of an enthusiastic MSG crowd.\u00a0<\/p>\n\u201cTheir game plan was to let him shoot,\u201d coach Mike Brown said, \u201cand he stepped up and he knocked down big shots.\u201d<\/p>\n
Josh Hart puts up a 3-point shot as Jayson Tatum jumps to defend during the second quarter of the Knicks\u2019 112-106 win over the Celtics on April 9, 2026 at the Garden. Charles Wenzelberg \/ New York Post<\/p>\n
Hart scored 15 of his game-high 26 points in the fourth quarter, burying all three of his trey attempts while suppressing Jayson Tatum on the other end with pressure defense. He was the unlikely hero following his dud of a first half, with Hart going into the break with more turnovers than points.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The final five minutes was a much different story, pushing the third-seeded Knicks to within two games of Boston for second in the East \u2014 and one game above the No. 4 Cavs. For the Knicks, a first-round series against either Toronto or Atlanta is now the most likely scenario.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Hart-breaker comes through,\u201d Karl-Anthony Towns said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Asked if he was surprised defenses are still leaving him open despite shooting over 40 percent on 3s this season, Hart replied, \u201cIt all depends. For me, I always talk\u00a0about how I\u2019m the\u00a0fifth option,\u00a0sixth\u00a0option. My thought process always is, how can I get these guys easy shots, get these guys involved, get them feeling good? Am I surprised with that? Nah, because I don\u2019t go out there, like, you know what, I\u2019m going to shoot seven, eight 3s. That\u2019s not really my cup of tea. But when I\u2019m open, I know I\u2019ve got to shoot those shots. But they\u2019re probably looking like he might shoot three or four, so let him have that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whatever the reason for Boston\u2019s strategy, it backfired. The Celtics also had no answer for the Towns-Jalen Brunson two-man game, which has emerged this week as a powerful force.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2028Just like three nights earlier in a victory over the Hawks, the Knicks worked Towns and Brunson in halfcourt sets. Pick-and-rolls, pick-and-pops, preferable switches.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jalen Brunson drives to the basket as Sam Hauser defends during the third quarter of the Knicks\u2019 win over the Celtics. Charles Wenzelberg \/ New York Post<\/p>\n
It turned into an unstoppable strategy as the Knicks (52-28) moved one step closer to clinching third in the East while keeping alive their hopes of supplanting Boston at No. 2.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re running it a little bit more than what we were doing before,\u201d Brown said of the Towns-Brunson pick-and-roll. \u201cAnd guys are getting a rhythm. Guys are getting a rhythm at the right time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brunson picked up five of his 10 assists in the fourth quarter, finishing with 25 points. Towns had 16 points and 12 rebounds. So while Hart got the biggest bouquet Thursday, Towns and Brunson were the catalysts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Karl-Anthony Towns reacts after a foul was called on OG Anunoby during the third quarter of the Knicks\u2019 win over the Celtics. Getty Images<\/p>\n
\u201cI just think [myself and Brunson] had convos in the last few days and those convos are showing up in the game, especially in the last two fourth quarters,\u201d Towns said. \u201cIn high-pressure situations, we\u2019ve leaned on each other and trusted each other in those situations and it\u2019s been very good for our team.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Celtics (54-26) were playing without their top star, Jaylen Brown, who sat with Achilles tendinitis. His DNP felt hypocritical after Brown spent months needling the Knicks and their fans, including a comment just this week about seeking revenge for last year\u2019s elimination.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Of course, revenge for the Celtics can only be accomplished in the playoffs, and Brown\u2019s absence theoretically provided an easier avenue to face the Knicks in the second round.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWhat\u2019s happening on and off the Garden court\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for Inside the Knicks by Stefan Bondy, a weekly exclusive on Sports+.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tThank you\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
But there were other reasons for Brown to rest. First, the Achilles soreness has been an ongoing issue for him this season. Also, Thursday\u2019s game was the first in a back-to-back set and the Celtics have previously alternated rest days for Brown and Tatum. So don\u2019t be surprised if Tatum sits Friday\u2019s game against the Pelicans.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And lastly, Tatum characterized Thursday\u2019s game as an emotional hurdle to clear after tearing his Achilles on the Garden court almost a year ago. It was his first time returning to the spot of the injury. He apparently needed MSG redemption more than Brown.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, at some point I knew I would have to get over that hurdle and play there again,\u201d Tatum said. \u201cSo, it\u2019s going to have to be this Thursday.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
If Tatum cleared a mental hurdle, it didn\u2019t help with his shot. He was off and particularly struggled down the stretch while guarded by Hart, finishing with 24 points on 7-of-22 shooting. The Celtics were outscored by 16 points in his 40 minutes. But the Knicks were killed by Payton Pritchard, who went off for 23 points with six assists on 10-of-20 shooting. When the Knicks threatened to pull away in the third quarter with a 13-point lead, Pritchard dragged the Celtics back.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It led to a nip-and-tuck fourth quarter, with the deficit never hitting double digits for the final\u00a018 minutes. In the end, the Towns-Brunson tandem \u2014 along with efficient shooting from Hart \u2014 carried the result. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Celtics dared Josh Hart to beat them. He obliged.\u00a0 After a miserable first half, Hart caught fire…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":192066,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[9127,4777,4778,1555,21,9,11,1104,10,319],"class_list":{"0":"post-192065","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-boston-celtics","9":"tag-jalen-brunson","10":"tag-josh-hart","11":"tag-karl-anthony-towns","12":"tag-nba","13":"tag-new-york","14":"tag-new-york-headlines","15":"tag-new-york-knicks","16":"tag-new-york-news","17":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/192065","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=192065"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/192065\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/192066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=192065"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=192065"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=192065"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}