Knicks Lose to Celtics in OT 115-111

The New York Knicks lost to the Boston Celtics on the road today 115-111.

The Knicks started out hot and scored the first 5 points of the game, but then let the Celtics score 12 in a row before a 3-pointer by Baron Davis. The Knicks regained the lead later in the quarter and a dunk by J.R. Smith put New York up 24-21. The first quarter ended with the Knicks leading by 2.

New York pulled away in the second quarter as the Celts struggled from the field and ended the first half with a 56-51 lead.

The Celtics bounced back in the 2nd half and developed a 15-point lead in the 3rd. The quarter ended with the Knicks down by 8.

The Knicks came back in the 4th quarter. A monster jam by Iman Shumpert cut the lead to 4 before a technical foul was called on him. With 2:07 left in the 4th, Jeremy Lin hit a 3-pointer and cut the lead to 1. Paul Pierce and Carmelo Anthony dueled for the rest of regulation and Melo missed an off-balance jumper at the buzzer after a game-tying 3-pointer by Pierce.

The Celtics outplayed the Knicks in overtime and jumped out to a 5-point lead. The Knicks were unable to cut the deficit enough and lost 115-111.

Rajon Rondo had a great game. He finished with 18 points, 17 rebounds, and 20 assists. Paul Pierce also had a great game and scored 34 points.

Melo led the Knicks in scoring with 25 points. Tyson Chandler and Amar'e Stoudemire also chipped in (Chandler had 8 points and 14 rebounds, Stoudemire had 16 points and 13 rebounds). Off the bench, Baron Davis had 8 points and a team-high 7 assists while Iman Shumpert and Steve Novak each scored 14 points. Lin struggled and finished with 14 points, 5 assists, and 6 turnovers.

Adding to a statistic I mentioned last article, the Knicks are 6-1 when Lin leads the team in scoring and are 6-9 when Melo leads the team in scoring. The Knicks are 2-0 when either Steve Novak or Landry Fields leads the team in scoring.

The Knicks play their next game on Tuesday against the Dallas Mavericks.

(Photo Courtesy: Yahoo! Sports "NBA: New York at Boston - Mar 4, 2012" http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/games/2012030402/gallery/im:urn:newsml:sports.yahoo,ap:20050301:nba,photo,ap-201203041525555263110:1)

Have any thoughts on the Knicks losing to the Celtics on the road? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.