Thunder, Celtics look to bounce back after series-opening losses to Knicks, Nuggets
The Boston Celtics and Oklahoma City Thunder looked very much like the dominant teams they were during the regular season in securing lopsided first-round playoff series wins.
Suddenly, both teams are facing their first dose of adversity this postseason following Game 1 losses to open Round 2.
The Celtics missed an NBA playoff-record 45 of their 60 3-pointers and blew a 20-point lead in a 108-105 overtime loss to the New York Knicks.
Meanwhile, the West’s top-seeded Thunder will look to recover after surrendering a 42-point scoring night to Nikola Jokic and 3-pointer to Aaron Gordon in the closing seconds of their 121-119 loss to the Denver Nuggets.
“This isn’t the first time we’ve handled adversity,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said Tuesday. “This isn’t the first time we’ve handled adversity in the playoffs. The team has made a great habit of that. We have to continue to do that.”
For Boston, it was a stunning result for a team that was 4-0 against its longtime rival during the regular season.
Most glaring was the Celtics’ performance from beyond the arc in clutch time during Game 1 against the Knicks.
In the clutch, defined as the final five minutes of fourth quarter or overtime when the scoring margin is five points or less, the Celtics were just 1-for-8 from 3.
In their 11 clutch losses during the regular season, Boston shot just 12-for-44 (27.3%) from 3.
Still, coach Joe Mazzulla said it isn’t something that needs a dramatic overcorrection heading into Game 2.
“You have to be able to make open shots,” Mazzulla said Tuesday. “If the open ones go in, we’re not having this conversation.”
New York’s Josh Hart is confident their victory wasn’t just courtesy of a fluke shooting night by Boston.
“I think it’s two-fold, right? Because I don’t think we played our best basketball,” Hart said. “Why are they not playing well? Is it because they’re just off that day or is it because of good defense or the other team is playing well and forces them into playing that kind of style?”
The Celtics were 19-2 during the regular season in games following a loss and are 4-0 over the past two postseasons (1-0 in the first round against Orlando).
The rub? Of Boston’s 21 losses during the regular season, 13 were at home.
“We’ve always bounced back,” guard Derrick White said. “I don’t expect nothing different now.”
New York Knicks at Boston Celtics
When/Where to Watch: Game 2, 7 p.m. EDT (TNT)
Series: Knicks lead, 1-0
BetMGM says: Celtics by 10.5
What to Know: The Celtics have thrived the past two seasons taking and making a high volume of 3-pointers. That strategy failed them in Game 1 against the Knicks, on a night in which the defending NBA champions took 60 3-pointers and had an NBA playoff-record 45 misses on their way to blowing a 20-point second-half lead in their 108-105 overtime loss. The Knicks will be looking to build on a night in which they seemed to confound Boston with multiple switches on defense and got big scoring nights from All-Star Jalen Brunson, who finished with 29 points. Boston starting center Kristaps Porzingis and reserve Sam Hauser are both day to day after leaving Game 1 early. Porzingis played for only 13 minutes before sitting out the second half with an illness. Hauser left with a sprained right ankle. Mazzulla said Porzingis has ongoing effects from an illness that sidelined him for a stretch of games late during the regular season.
Denver Nuggets at Oklahoma City Thunder
When/Where to Watch: Game 2, 9:30 p.m. EDT (TNT)
Series: Nuggets lead, 1-0
BetMGM says: Thunder by 11.5
What to Know: It’ll be Game 2 of the matchup between Denver’s Nikola Jokic and Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, two of the three MVP finalists. Denver rallied from a double-digit deficit in the last five minutes of Game 1 to win 121-119 and handed the Thunder their first loss since April 6. Jokic went off for 42 points and 22 rebounds in the victory. The Nuggets outrebounded Oklahoma City 63-43 and scored 27 second-chance points while getting Oklahoma City big men Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren into foul trouble. Jokic committed five fouls in the opener, and he often initiated contact while using his experience to avoid fouling out. He received a flagrant-1 for elbowing Lu Dort in the head in the fourth quarter. A key to the series going forward might be how physical a style the 7-foot, 284-pound Jokic is allowed to play. Gilgeous-Alexander had 33 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in Game 1, but didn’t get the usual help from his teammates. Oklahoma City’s second All-Star, Jalen Williams, went 5 for 20 and scored 16 points in the opener. He rarely strings bad games together.
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AP Sports Writer Cliff Brunt in Oklahoma City contributed to this story.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba
By KYLE HIGHTOWER
AP Sports Writer
