If there's one play that sums up how the Boston Celtics kept their season alive, it's this gritty sequence from Jaylen Brown early in the second half.
The reigning Finals MVP hounded Knicks superstar Jalen Brunson, poked the ball away from him, and dove towards the Celtics bench to save the loose ball.
JAYLEN BROWN POKES IT AWAY AND LAYS OUT TO SAVE IT 👏👏
— NBA (@NBA) May 15, 2025
Game 5 on TNT | NYK leads 3-1
It didn’t stop there as Brown sprinted back, attacked the basket, drew a foul against Karl-Anthony Towns, and hit two free throws.
“I thought the dive into the bench kind of changed the game for us," Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said.
"I thought the dive into the bench kind of changed the game for us"
— NBA (@NBA) May 15, 2025
Jaylen Brown's hustle & leadership were on display tonight 💯
It did, and the Celtics showed their championship grit with their backs against the wall.
Brown unloaded 26 points, but the heroes are aplenty for the defending champions that led to 127-102 rout of the Knicks to force a Game 6 back in New York.
[ALSO READ: Celtics show champion heart, rout Knicks to force Game 6 back in New York]
Derrick White tallied a team-high 34 points built on seven threes, reigning Sixth Man of the Year Payton Pritchard added 17 markers, and Jrue Holiday submitted 14.
Even big man Luke Kornet, who had five blocks in the entire playoffs entering Game 5, delivered a solid performance on both ends of the floor.
The 29-year-old posted a career-high seven denials — three more than the entire Knicks team — and chipped in a near double-double of 10 points and nine rebounds.
Thanks for coming to Luke's Block Party 🥳
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) May 15, 2025
“Don’t count us out just yet,” Brown, who also dished out a playoff career-high 12 assists, spoke afterwards.
"Don't count us out just yet."
— ESPN (@espn) May 15, 2025
Jaylen Brown says the Celtics aren't done after the Game 5 win 😤
With superstar Jayson Tatum out for the remainder of the postseason due to a ruptured Achilles, the Celtics showed out in a must-win game to avoid elimination and cut the series deficit to 3-2.
Boston outscored New York, 68-43, in the second half and knocked down a series-high 22 threes as they looked to become just the 14th team in league history to come back from a 3-1 deficit.
“Losing JT [Tatum] is tough, but we ain’t want to end our season tonight,’ White added.
After surviving one of three do-or-die contests, the Celtics will be on the road again in hopes of dragging the Knicks to a Game 7 back in Boston.
“We did what was necessary to do what we needed to do to get it back to New York. You don’t get to pick the test that you have, you pick how you respond to them,” Mazzulla insisted.
