BOSTON (AP) 鈥� The Boston crowd chanted 鈥淥ne more 3!鈥�
The Celtics did their best, firing up 13 shots from 3-point range in an attempt to break the NBA record for 3s in a game 鈥� and missing them all. In the end, all the defending champions could do in their 132-109 victory over the New York Knicks on Tuesday night was tie the record of 29 3s made by Milwaukee in 2020.
鈥淚t was almost like we got jinxed or something,鈥� said Jaylen Brown, who scored 23 points and was 5 of 9 from 3-point range but tossed up an airball with a chance to break the record.
鈥淲hen we were just playing, having fun, playing our style of basketball, everything was going in,鈥� Brown said. 鈥淭he crowd got into it, and we started hunting them, we couldn鈥檛 even hit the bright side of the barn.鈥�
Jayson Tatum made 8 of 11 from long distance and Derrick White connected on six as the Celtics made 29 of their first 48 3-point attempts while opening a 35-point lead over New York on the night to the rafters.
The Celtics made 10 of 17 3-pointers in the first quarter, when they opened a 19-point lead. They added seven 3s in the second quarter and nine in the third. Al Horford tied the record from the left side with about nine minutes left in the game and the Celtics leading by 33.
Then the defending champions couldn't find the hoop.
Brown and Xavier Tillman each fired up an airball from beyond the arc, and the Celtics scored just three more times the rest of the way 鈥� all 2-pointers 鈥� with just one basket after the 6:37 mark. Neither team scored at all in the final 3:43.
Payton Pritchard was the master bricklayer, missing five from long range. Sam Hauser missed three, Tillman missed two and Jordan Walsh missed one. Boston finished 29 of 61 from 3-point range.
鈥淲hen we were tied, I was like 鈥榃e鈥檙e one away from the record,'鈥� White said. 鈥淚 shouldn鈥檛 have said anything. It鈥檚 kind of like a no-hitter, huh? I blame myself.鈥�
___
AP NBA:
Jimmy Golen, The Associated Press
