The New York Knicks pulled out an impressive upset win in Game 1 of their series against the Boston Celtics on Monday, erasing a 20-point third-quarter deficit to force overtime and win in the extra period in front of a stunned Boston crowd.
While the comeback effort was greatly helped by a historically bad streak of shooting from the Celtics, the Knicks kept their cool when they could have faltered and fought all the way back.
After the game, Knicks star Jalen Brunson shared the simple message that the team held onto while working to claw their way back into the game, play by play, in the second half.
“We told each other just keep believing. Just keep fighting, sticking together, and keep chipping away,” Brunson said. “There wasn’t going to be a 20-point shot where we can just come back. We’ve got to keep chipping away possession by possession. Just find a way to keep getting stops and making plays offensively as well.”
"We told each other, just keep believing, just keep fighting, sticking together, and just keep chipping away"
— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) May 6, 2025
Jalen Brunson talks about the Knicks coming back from a 20-point deficit to win Game 1: pic.twitter.com/N5ngFHRcuU
Brunson was also quick to point out teammate Josh Hart, who, as he put it, always finds a way to “run around and do things,” for helping spark the comeback.
With the win, the Knicks take a 1-0 series lead into Game 2, which will be played in Boston on Wednesday night.
Even if they find themselves in a big deficit, it’s clear the Knicks aren’t going to roll over when the going gets tough.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jalen Brunson Shares Simple Message That Helped Knicks Mount 20-Point Comeback.
