BOSTON - The Celtics led by the second-20 in the Eastern Conference semi-finals against the New York Knicks, Jaylen Brown sat silently on his locker and headed straight ahead. Like all their lockers, in front of him was a quote from everyone Phil Jackson.

"You're just successful when you perform a successful performance. You have to do it again."

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The NBA defending champion was lost 91-90 in Game 2 of the second round of the playoff series, and there is no better description of the NBA defending champion. Celtic Humane 0-2. Both are heartbreaking losses. They were in their third game last Saturday at Madison Square Garden and almost lost themselves.

These Knicks were not impressed by Boston's previous success. They won't give it to the Celtics, either.

As Kristaps Porzi of Boston put it: “No one feels sorry for us.”

In fact, the Knicks could take everything from these Celtics. They did it in Game 2, just like in Game 1, rushing out of the third quarter deficit of 20 points. It looks different, although it feels different. It wasn't Monday, when the Celtics were determined for too many 3-pointers and were happy with their strengths. They were uncomfortable with the lead on Wednesday and hesitated.

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"We just didn't execute," Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said.

There has never been any clearer than the last possession. Boston had a 12.7 second victory after Jalen Brunson's two free throws to the Nicks' 91-90 edge. Mazzulla did not call to pause. Instead, the Celtics played the same drama on their former property, freeing up Jayson Tatum’s dunk, but this time he was bottled — first with Mitchell Robinson, then Og Anunoby and finally Mikal Bridges, who stole the victory like he did in the first game. Tatum never got his shot.

He also did not explain himself after the game, as he was about to start the press release and evacuated TD Garden at 10:30 pm. It was two painful shooting shows for all the Celtics, but Tatum in particular was a suitable ending, but Tatum scored 13 points on 19. It should be 20 years old.

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"I think his angle is good," Mazula said. "No shooting, so he has no time."

Before that moment, the game was lost. The Celtics have 3:12 left in the third quarter with a 73-53 lead. Their probability of winning is 99%. The Knicks didn't have a second. Then, as Brown said, the Celtics became tight or “very frustrated.” They flipped the ball in four of the next five games, with New York finishing the quarter with an 8-0 run. They once again gave New York a more manageable deficit.

The Knicks seized the opportunity again. Bridges played an 8-8 game from the court and caught fire in the final 12 minutes to score 14 points, including a Boston lead in the middle of the fourth quarter to reach 84-77. A moment later, Brunson buried three people, silencing the crowd. Everyone in the building can feel what the Celtics have to feel. This cannot happen. again.

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As Porziņģis puts it, “In the end, if the game is close, it’s almost a gamble.” It’s not a gamble, but a roulette against the Knicks, especially when the game is the biggest close, when Brunson is dealing with it.

Tatum’s appearance is as vast as all his series in the right corner, which would have given the Celtics a 89-80 lead with a 3:39 run – he took a long time. Instead, New York's Josh Hart's relief cut Boston's advantage by 86-82, and Karl-Anthony Towns' three-pointer cut it to a minute later.

You can hear 19,156 fans almost immediately. If anyone doesn't feel the pressure is Brunson, it's the NBA's clutch player of the year, who worked hard all night and was protected by Jrue Holiday for most of the time. He made a ridiculous 18-foot fading jumper that gave the Knicks a 87-86 night with 57 seconds left on his transition layup.

Four consecutive scores from Tatum, including a driving dunk, put Boston 90-89 ahead, and only Brunson strikes again, shooting 15 feet from the rim. Of course, he did both.

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“It’s all about focusing, having a clear mind and trying to win the game,” he said. “That’s my mindset.”

Now, the Celtics have to answer this call. They've been here before - Miami Heat fell 0-3 in the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals. They lost the series in seven games. No except them here In the past, I kept blowing the 20-minute line. How does someone deal with this mentally?

"In a sense, it's kind of under the full pressure of us," Porziņģis said. "I don't know, if you check the odds, maybe the Knicks are the favorite win right now. Who knows? We want to win, so we're in this hole now - our backs are against the wall and we don't have any losses."

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Every betmgm is even odds. But for Porziņģis's point of view, for all the horrible resonance of the collapse, the Celtic staff and family had a sense of peace after the second amazing failure. There is a "twirling" noise, "This is the reason for a seven-scene series".

Then there was brown, staring at his locker, soaking in emotions. What happened in his mind?

"It's done," he said. "We have to make sure we're ready for the third game. I think we should do a lot of production. I think we have a lot of great shots tonight. We're just going to relax and take a deep breath and play Celtic basketball. Just like we're down 0-2, we can tie this up."