The cards were against the Boston Celtics to start, but they flexed their offensive muscles and blew out the New York Knicks 106-86 in their second preseason game Wednesday.
The matchup was the Knicks’ first game of the preseason, so they had the advantage of fresh legs and a roster full of veterans. Boston once again started slow, and they trailed the Knicks at the end of the first quarter, but they turned things around more quickly than they did in their first game against the Philadelphia 76ers. The young Celtics team had total control over the game by the second quarter.
Jared Sullinger was the star of the game with 23 points on 9-for-12 shooting in 23 minutes. Sully also made all of his 3-point attempts and added five rebounds and two assists.
The win was the second straight 20-point victory for the Celtics, and they improve their preseason record to 2-0.
Let’s look at a few more notes from the Celtics’ shellacking of the Knicks.
— Marcus Thornton showed off his hunger for the game Wednesday.
Thornton was a game-time decision after having a root canal earlier in the day, but he played through it and still produced. The guard put up 12 points on 5-for-10 shooting with a team-high three steals.
— Jared Sullinger and Kelly Olynyk aren’t your typical frontcourt duo, but they certainly play well together. Olynyk put up a solid stat line of his own with 12 points, four rebounds and two assists.
— Marcus Smart showed off the jumper he’s been working on.
Smart is touted for his defense, and he showed why his offensive skills don’t get as much love with two points on 0-for-8 shooting Monday. But Wednesday was a much different story. Smart put up 11 points on 4-for-8 shooting and added two 3-pointers for good measure.
— The Celtics were able to capitalize on some sloppy offense from the Knicks. New York turned the ball over a whopping 28 times, half of which were steals by the Celtics. Boston put up 33 points on those turnovers.
— Carmelo Anthony had a relatively silent night, putting up just 10 points on 3-for-9 shooting while going 0-for-3 from 3-point distance.
— Rodney McGruder only played five minutes for the Celtics on Wednesday night, but he ended the game with some pizzazz. McGruder slammed down a one-handed dunk off an alley-oop feed from Tim Frazier on the Celtics’ final score of the game.
Photo via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
