Game ID: 42400216
Boston Celtics @ New York Knicks
Friday, May 16, 2025 at 8:00 PM ET
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
NYK 26 38 28 27 119BOS 20 17 20 24 81
BOS @ NYK ScoutingBOS @ NYK Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
NYK availability going into 5/07 · 1 day's restOUT Tucker missed 7 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Wright missed 7 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 3 since 4/29, out tonight
BACK Achiuwa back 5/05 after 6, 5 min since (28% of 18)
NEW Bridges 37 to 43 min over the last 5
NEW Anunoby 37 to 42 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 5/10 · 2 days' restOUT Tucker missed 8 since 4/19, out tonight
OUT Wright missed 8 since 4/19, returns tonight: 3 min (22% of 14)
OUT Shamet missed 4 since 4/29, returns tonight: 3 min (22% of 14)
BACK Achiuwa back 5/05 after 6, 5 min since (28% of 18)
NEW Bridges 37 to 44 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 5/12 · 1 day's restOUT Tucker missed 9 since 4/19, out tonight
BACK Achiuwa back 5/05 after 6, 6 min since (30% of 18)
BACK Wright back 5/10 after 8, 3 min since (22% of 14)
BACK Shamet back 5/10 after 4, 3 min since (22% of 14)
NEW Bridges 37 to 43 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 5/14 · 1 day's restOUT Tucker missed 10 since 4/19, out tonight
BACK Achiuwa back 5/05 after 6, 4 min since (21% of 18)
BACK Wright back 5/10 after 8, 3 min since (22% of 14)
BACK Shamet back 5/10 after 4, 3 min since (22% of 14)
NEW Bridges 37 to 44 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 5/16 · 1 day's restOUT Tucker missed 11 since 4/19, returns tonight: 4 min (28% of 16)
OUT Wright missed 2 since 5/12, out tonight
BACK Achiuwa back 5/05 after 6, 4 min since (20% of 18)
BACK Shamet back 5/10 after 4, 3 min since (21% of 14)
NEW Bridges 37 to 43 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 5/21 · 4 days' restOUT Wright missed 3 since 5/12, returns tonight: 0 min (3% of 14)
BACK Tucker back 5/16 after 11, 4 min since (28% of 16)
BACK Shamet back 5/10 after 4, 4 min since (26% of 14)
NYK availability going into 5/23 · 1 day's restBACK Tucker back 5/16 after 11, 4 min since (28% of 16)
BACK Wright back 5/10 after 8, 2 min since (13% of 14)
BACK Shamet back 5/10 after 4, 4 min since (26% of 14)
NYK availability going into 5/25 · 1 day's restOUT Achiuwa missed 2 since 5/21, out tonight
OUT Tucker missed 2 since 5/21, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 2 since 5/21, returns tonight: 11 min (83% of 14)
BACK Wright back 5/21 after 3, 0 min since (3% of 14)
NYK availability going into 5/27 · 1 day's restOUT Achiuwa missed 3 since 5/21, returns tonight: 2 min (13% of 18)
OUT Tucker missed 3 since 5/21, out tonight
BACK Wright back 5/21 after 3, 7 min since (49% of 14)
BACK Shamet back 5/25 after 2, 11 min since (83% of 14)
BOS availability going into 5/07 · 1 day's restBACK Holiday back 5/05 after 3, 39 min since (126% of 31)
BACK Queta back 4/29 after 4, 4 min since (29% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 4/29 after 4, 4 min since (33% of 12)
BACK Craig back 4/29 after 3, 4 min since (44% of 10)
NEW Horford 28 to 34 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 5/10 · 2 days' restOUT Queta missed 2 since 5/05, returns tonight: 2 min (16% of 13)
OUT Scheierman missed 2 since 5/05, returns tonight: 2 min (18% of 12)
OUT Craig missed 2 since 5/05, returns tonight: 2 min (21% of 10)
BACK Holiday back 5/05 after 3, 36 min since (118% of 31)
NEW Horford 28 to 33 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 5/12 · 1 day's restOUT Hauser missed 2 since 5/07, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 5/05 after 3, 33 min since (106% of 31)
BACK Queta back 4/29 after 4, 3 min since (22% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 4/29 after 4, 3 min since (25% of 12)
BACK Craig back 4/29 after 3, 3 min since (32% of 10)
NEW Horford 28 to 33 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 5/14 · 1 day's restOUT Hauser missed 3 since 5/07, returns tonight: 15 min (71% of 21)
BACK Holiday back 5/05 after 3, 33 min since (107% of 31)
BACK Queta back 4/29 after 4, 3 min since (22% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 4/29 after 4, 3 min since (25% of 12)
BACK Craig back 4/29 after 3, 3 min since (32% of 10)
NEW Horford 28 to 34 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 5/16 · 1 day's restBACK Holiday back 5/05 after 3, 33 min since (107% of 31)
BACK Hauser back 5/14 after 3, 15 min since (71% of 21)
BACK Queta back 5/10 after 2, 2 min since (18% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 5/10 after 2, 2 min since (20% of 12)
BACK Craig back 5/10 after 2, 3 min since (29% of 10)
NEW White 34 to 40 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 110, shooting 43 percent and 35 from three, 26 free throws a game; Brunson at 27 and Towns at 20 a game. Without Tucker (11 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 103, shooting 43 percent and 36 from three, 22 free throws a game; Tatum at 25 and White at 23 a game. One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 103 a night to New York's 110. Call it Boston 110, New York 108, New York keeping it close.
5/07 @ BOS 91-90 — NYK notes
NYK won 91-90. NYK shot 43% (37 of 86) to BOS's 36%, 9 of 31 from three. Hart led with 23 (9 of 15, 3 of 6 from three); Towns added 21, Brunson 17. The hinge was Q4, 30-17: NYK came in trailing by 12 and left it ahead by 1. NYK trailed 41-50 at the half and won the second half 50-40. Robinson was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
5/10 vs BOS 93-115 — NYK notes
NYK lost 93-115. NYK shot 40% (32 of 80) to BOS's 48%, 5 of 25 from three, and went to the line 35 times to BOS's 17 — 24 points from the stripe to their 15. Brunson led with 27 (9 of 21, 3 of 8 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); Towns added 21, Bridges 12. Q4 was theirs, 23-19, the deficit cut from 26 to 22, but the other 3 periods went 96-70 against them. Anunoby's -25 in 31 minutes was the worst on the floor.
5/12 vs BOS 121-113 — NYK notes
NYK won 121-113. NYK shot 54% (50 of 92) to BOS's 48%, 12 of 34 from three, and got to the line 12 times to BOS's 26. The glass went 43-31 for them. Brunson led with 39 (14 of 25, 4 of 8 from three, 7 of 9 at the line); Bridges added 23, Towns 23. The hinge was Q3, 37-23: NYK came in trailing by 11 and left it ahead by 3. NYK trailed 51-62 at the half and won the second half 70-51. Bridges was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
5/14 @ BOS 102-127 — NYK notes
NYK lost 102-127. NYK shot 36% (29 of 81) to BOS's 52%, 12 of 30 from three, and went to the line 40 times to BOS's 26 — 32 points from the stripe to their 17. Hart led with 24 (7 of 15, 5 of 9 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Brunson added 22, Towns 19. Q1 was theirs, 32-30, but the other 3 periods went 97-70 against them. Bridges's -25 in 40 minutes was the worst on the floor.
5/16 vs BOS 119-81 — NYK notes
NYK won 119-81. NYK shot 46% (42 of 91) to BOS's 36%, 16 of 45 from three, and went to the line 21 times to BOS's 10 — 19 points from the stripe to their 7. The glass went 55-36 for them. Anunoby led with 23 (7 of 18, 4 of 13 from three); Brunson added 23, Bridges 22. The hinge was Q2, 38-17: a lead of 6 became 27, and the lead reached 41. Brunson was the night's best plus/minus at +30.
5/21 vs IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 105 a night and allowing 105, shooting 44 percent and 33 from three, 24 free throws a game; Brunson at 26 and Towns at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. 4 days' rest. Indiana comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 114, shooting 50 percent and 42 from three, 24 free throws a game; Siakam at 18 and Haliburton at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Isa. Jackson (86 straight). 7 days' rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the arc, Indiana at 42 percent from three to New York's 33 and the glass, where New York has been plus-5 a night and Indiana minus-4. Call it New York 113, Indiana 112, Indiana keeping it close.
5/23 vs IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 115, shooting 46 percent and 33 from three, 30 free throws a game; Brunson at 31 and Towns at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 7 a night. One day's rest. Indiana comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 119, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 27 free throws a game; Haliburton at 19 and Siakam at 18 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Isa. Jackson (87 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-7 a night and Indiana minus-6 and the arc, Indiana at 39 percent from three to New York's 33. Call it New York 117, Indiana 115, Indiana keeping it close.
5/25 @ IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Indiana comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 117, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 25 free throws a game; Siakam at 23 and Haliburton at 18 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. Without Isa. Jackson (88 straight), Walker (2 straight). One day's rest. New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 115, shooting 47 percent and 35 from three, 27 free throws a game; Brunson at 33 and Towns at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Achiuwa (2 straight), Tucker (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Indiana wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-8 a night and Indiana minus-7 and the arc, Indiana at 40 percent from three to New York's 35. Call it Indiana 117, New York 115, New York keeping it close.
5/27 @ IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Indiana comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 113, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 25 free throws a game; Siakam at 23 and Haliburton at 21 a game. Without Isa. Jackson (89 straight), Walker (3 straight). One day's rest. New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 112, shooting 45 percent and 35 from three, 30 free throws a game; Brunson at 29 and Towns at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Achiuwa (3 straight), Tucker (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Indiana wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-5 a night and Indiana minus-3 and the line, where New York takes 30 free throws a game to Indiana's 25. Call it Indiana 116, New York 113, New York keeping it close.
5/07 vs NYK 90-91 — BOS notes
BOS lost 90-91. BOS took 8 more shots (94 to 86), fed by 16 offensive rebounds, but shot 36% to NYK's 43%, 10 of 40 from three. Brown led with 20 (8 of 23, 2 of 7 from three); White added 20, Tatum 13. Q1 was theirs, 24-13, but the other 3 periods went 78-66 against them. They led by as many as 20. Horford's -11 in 29 minutes was the worst on the floor.
5/10 @ NYK 115-93 — BOS notes
BOS won 115-93. BOS shot 48% (40 of 83) to NYK's 40%, 20 of 40 from three, and got to the line 17 times to NYK's 35. Pritchard led with 23 (8 of 16, 5 of 10 from three); Tatum added 22, Brown 19. The hinge was Q1, 36-20: from level to 16 ahead, and the lead reached 31. Brown was the night's best plus/minus at +29.
5/12 @ NYK 113-121 — BOS notes
BOS lost 113-121. BOS shot 48% (38 of 79) to NYK's 54%, 18 of 48 from three, and went to the line 26 times to NYK's 12 — 19 points from the stripe to their 9. The glass went 31-43 against them. Tatum led with 42 (16 of 28, 7 of 16 from three); White added 23, Brown 20. Q1 was theirs, 39-28, but the other 3 periods went 93-74 against them. They led by as many as 14. Holiday's -12 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
5/14 vs NYK 127-102 — BOS notes
BOS won 127-102. BOS shot 52% (44 of 84) to NYK's 36%, 22 of 49 from three, and got to the line 26 times to NYK's 40. White led with 34 (9 of 16, 7 of 13 from three, 9 of 11 at the line); Brown added 26, Pritchard 17. The hinge was Q3, 32-17: from level to 15 ahead, and the lead reached 28. Brown was the night's best plus/minus at +28.
5/16 @ NYK 81-119 — BOS notes
BOS lost 81-119. BOS shot 36% (31 of 86) to NYK's 46%, 12 of 40 from three, and got to the line just 10 times against 22 fouls committed. The glass went 36-55 against them. Brown led with 20 (8 of 20, 3 of 9 from three); Pritchard added 11, Horford 10. Q4 was theirs, 24-27, but the other 3 periods went 92-57 against them. White's -45 in 30 minutes was the worst on the floor.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
BOSAH A. Horford
BS B. Scheierman
DW D. White
JB J. Brown
JD J. Davison
JH J. Holiday
JW J. Walsh
KP K. Porziņģis
LK L. Kornet
NQ N. Queta
PP P. Pritchard
SH S. Hauser
TC T. Craig
XT X. Tillman
NYKCP C. Payne
JB J. Brunson
JH J. Hart
KT K. Towns
LS L. Shamet
MB M. Bridges
MM M. McBride
MR M. Robinson
OA O. Anunoby
PA P. Achiuwa
PT P. Tucker
TK T. Kolek
BOS/NYK the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Knicks beat Celtics 119-81 in Game 6 and advance to face Pacers in Eastern Conference finals
NEW YORK -- — Jalen Brunson and the New York Knicks viewed reaching the Eastern Conference finals as just another step in a season that's not over. It's not time to celebrate.
Try telling that to the thousands of fans dancing and chanting inside and on the streets all around Madison Square Garden.
The Knicks reached the conference finals for the first time in 25 years and ended the one-year NBA title reign of the Boston Celtics with astonishing ease, rolling to a 119-81 victory in Game 6 on Friday night.
On the way to their postgame press conference, Josh Hart showed Mikal Bridges a video of a fan climbing a light pole outside the arena.
"I’m new here but just know how much New York loves their sports, especially the Knicks," Bridges said. “So, excited to be a part of it. They enjoy it for us right now but obviously we got way more to go.”
Brunson and OG Anunoby each scored 23 points for the Knicks, who will face the Indiana Pacers , the same team they met in their last conference finals appearance in 2000. Game 1 is Wednesday night in New York.
“It’s a great win. We advance .You look at that, but you also understand you have to get ready for the next series," Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “The Pacers are a terrific team and we’re going to have to be ready.”
The Knicks hadn’t won a playoff series on their home floor since the 1999 East finals. So the celebrating started late in the one-sided first half and was sure to carry on deep into the night around the arena.
Bridges scored 22 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 21 for the Knicks, whose 38-point margin of victory was their largest in a postseason game.
Jaylen Brown scored 20 points for the Celtics, who lost leading scorer Jayson Tatum to a ruptured Achilles tendon in Game 4 but believed they still had enough to get it back to Boston for Game 7 and keep their title defense alive.
It was quickly clear that wasn’t happening. Boston coach Joe Mazzulla began pulling his starters in the third quarter after the deficit reached 41 points.
“We didn’t have the same team this year that we had last year," Celtics guard Derrick White said. "Every year it’s a different team. We had a goal at the beginning of the year and we fell short.”
New York blew it open with a 13-3 run that made it 49-27, a surge highlighted by 6-foot-1 guard Deuce McBride’s chasedown block of White’s shot that led to Hart’s second straight basket while being fouled.
Ben Stiller and Lenny Kravitz shared a handshake and hug afterward along celebrity row, where the A-listers were standing and cheering much of the night, the same as the fans sitting near the top of the arena.
The Knicks led 64-37 at halftime, a 27-point lead that matched their biggest in a playoff game in the shot-clock era. They led the Lakers 69-42 in Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals, when Willis Reed’s return from injury sparked the Knicks to their first NBA title.
Hart finished with 10 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.