Monday’s NBA Playoffs saw a potentially serious injury to Jayson Tatum and the Knicks and Timberwolves move closer towards advancing.
The reigning NBA champions are now one loss away from being dethroned, and may be trying to survive without the services of their biggest star.
The New York Knicks put the Boston Celtics on the brink of elimination with Monday’s 121-113 win in Game 4 of an Eastern Conference semi-final, a result made even more painful for Boston after Jayson Tatum was carried off the court late in the fourth quarter with a potentially significant lower right leg injury.
Tatum’s leg gave out as he scrambled for a loose ball with 2:58 remaining and the Celtics trailing 113-104. The six-time All-Star remained on the court for a while in obvious pain before being assisted to the locker room, and was later spotted in a wheelchair.
After the Celtics failed to score following the ensuing timeout, Jalen Brunson all but ended any Boston comeback hopes by burying a 3-pointer with 2:25 to go.
Brunson finished with 39 points and 12 assists to help the third-seeded Knicks take a 3-1 lead in the series, which they can close out in Boston on Wednesday.
New York also got big contributions from several other starters to overcome a 14-point third-quarter deficit. Karl-Anthony Towns posted 23 points and 11 rebounds, Mikal Bridges also had 23 points and OG Anunoby added 20 to complement Brunson, who led the comeback by totalling 26 of his points after half-time.
Tatum amassed 42 points – his highest in a play-off game this season – and eight rebounds before departing. The second-seeded Celtics also received 23 points from Derrick White and 20 from Jaylen Brown.
Boston looked on its way to evening the series early on, as it built a 62-51 half-time lead behind Tatum’s 20 points and 17 from White, who went 4 of 5 from 3-point range over the first two quarters. Another 3-pointer from White extended the Celtics’ advantage to 72-58 with nine minutes left in the third quarter.
The Knicks took control shortly afterward, though, as they outscored Boston by a 21-8 margin to close out the quarter and take an 88-85 edge into the fourth. Brunson had 11 points during the run, which Josh Hart capped with a layup just before the buzzer to put New York up by three.
Tatum got the Celtics back even with a 3-point play with 6:12 remaining that tied the score at 102-102. The Knicks then answered with a 14-2 spurt that put the game away, with Brunson’s 3-pointer with 2:25 left giving his team a comfortable 116-104 lead.
Timberwolves move step closer towards ousting Warriors
Anthony Edwards scored 16 of his 30 points during a dominant third quarter as the Minnesota Timberwolves moved a win away from advancing to the Western Conference finals with Monday’s 117-110 victory over the injury-plagued Golden State Warriors.
The Timberwolves outscored Golden State by a 39-17 margin in the third quarter en route to taking a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven conference semi-finals series. Sixth-seeded Minnesota can clinch a return trip to the West finals with a win at home in Wednesday’s Game 5.
Edwards went 6 of 11 from 3-point range and Julius Randle chipped in 31 points as the duo carried Minnesota once again. The Timberwolves also received 10 points and 13 rebounds from Jalen McDaniels.
Seventh-seeded Golden State lost its third straight game playing without Stephen Curry due to a hamstring injury the two-time NBA MVP sustained in the series opener. With Curry again unavailable, the Warriors’ starting backcourt of Buddy Hield and Brandin Podziemski combined to shoot 7 of 25 from the field.
Jonathan Kuminga led the Warriors with 23 points off the bench, while Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green each recorded 14 points in defeat.
The Timberwolves moved ahead for good by putting together a pivotal 17-0 run after Golden State tied the game at 68-68 four minutes into the third quarter. Edwards was the catalyst, as the All-Star guard accounted for 11 of those points and capped the flurry with a jumper that gave Minnesota an 85-68 lead with 3:46 left in the period.
Minnesota shot 65.2 percent overall in the third quarter and owned a comfortable 97-77 advantage entering the fourth following Randle’s layup near the end of the period.
The Timberwolves maintained a double-digit cushion until the game’s final stages, with their lead reaching 21 points at 112-91 with just under five minutes to play.
