Pritchard, C’s role players outclass Knicks’ supporting cast in Game 3

Pritchard, C’s role players outclass Knicks’ supporting cast in Game 3 initially appeared on NBC Sports Boston

In Saturday’s Sport 3 at Madison Sq. Backyard, Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard confirmed a nationwide viewers why he won the 2025 NBA Sixth Man of the Year award in a landslide.

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Pritchard propelled the C’s to a 115-93 victory with a team-high — and a playoff career-high — 23 factors off the bench. In line with Celtics stats guru Dick Lipe, that marks essentially the most factors scored by a Boston reserve in a highway playoff sport since Kevin McHale in opposition to Detroit in 1991.

Pritchard helped the Celtics overcome their current 3-point taking pictures woes by making 5 of his 10 makes an attempt from past the arc. Boston completed 20-for-40 from deep after taking pictures 25-for-100 throughout Video games 1 and a pair of.

“We just had to come out and every possession, we had to win every one of them. If it’s a loose ball, we gotta win it. If it’s a rebound, we gotta win it,” Pritchard advised NBC Sports activities Boston’s Abby Chin after the win.

“I knew the shots would eventually fall. We took care of it today, but focus on Monday now.”

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Pritchard’s efficiency headlined an enormous day for the Celtics’ supporting forged. C’s gamers not named Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown mixed for 74 factors whereas Knicks function gamers (not Jalen Brunson or Karl-Anthony Cities) totaled solely 45 factors.

Derrick White and Al Horford added 17 and 15 factors, respectively. They shot a mixed 6-for-10 from 3-point vary. Knicks wing OG Anunoby — who scored a game-high 29 points in Game 1 — had simply two factors on 1 for six taking pictures, whereas Boston’s bench outscored New York’s 34 to 21.

Though the 3-pointers leap off the web page, Pritchard recognized the Celtics’ ball safety as the rationale for his or her bounce-back win. They’d solely eight turnovers after recording 16 in Sport 2 and 13 in Sport 1.

However most significantly, they saved their foot on the gasoline after blowing consecutive 20-point leads.

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“Just our intensity. It didn’t feel like we had as many bad turnovers,” Pritchard advised Chin. “Took care of the rock. And then we controlled the end of quarters, didn’t give them any momentum plays, so that’s a big factor.”

The Celtics, trailing the sequence 2-1, nonetheless have their work lower out for them with Sport 4 set to be performed in entrance of the raucous Madison Sq. Backyard crowd on Monday. Pritchard is embracing the problem.