The Celtics bury the Knicks and set the NBA 3-point record with 29

BOSTON – The Celtics and New York Knicks entered the opening game of the NBA season on Tuesday night, a meeting that Jalen Brunson said on Tuesday morning – even though it was the first game – was a good indicator of the new look the Knicks face the defending champions to.

But instead of a tense, dramatic affair, the only drama that night at TD Garden, where the Celtics hoisted their record-tying 18th NBA championship flag, was watching Boston take the final with 8:54 left and a 132: The 109 win was New York's attempt – and ultimately failure – to break the NBA record for 3-pointers made in a game.

After Al Horford scored Boston's third straight goal with 8:54 left early in the fourth quarter, tying the Milwaukee Bucks with 29 goals in a game and setting the NBA record, the Celtics missed 13 straight attempts, including three air balls and several other ugly misses were the only thing Boston didn't like.

“It was almost like we were jinxed or something,” Celtics forward Jaylen Brown said. “When we just played, had fun and played our style of basketball, everything went right. And then when the crowd started and we started chasing them, we couldn't even hit the broad side of the barn.” . Everything was gone.

“So that shows that we are not a team that goes after threes. We play the game and do what we're supposed to do, but I think towards the end it was difficult because we didn't play like that. “We had played normally, but we still had a lot of great looks.

Before Boston's cold streak, the Celtics had gone 29-48 from behind the arc, part of a team-wide offensive performance that saw the Celtics record 33 assists compared to just three turnovers. Jayson Tatum, who was just fine-tuning his sweater this summer, finished with 37 points on 14-for-18 shooting, including 8-for-11 from 3-point range.

But as hot as the Celtics were for most of the game, they got cold down the stretch. Although the crowd chanted “One more 3” several times, it wasn’t enough for Boston to get over the finish line as the Celtics spoiled the Knicks’ debuts of big-name newcomers Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns.

“I asked around, about 26 somethings [the record] “was,” said Celtics guard Derrick White, “and then someone told me.” And then when we were tied, I thought, “Oh, we're one point away from the score.”

“I shouldn't have said anything. It's kind of a no-hitter, isn't it. I blame myself for that.”

The Knicks blamed themselves — and especially their defense — for allowing the game to slip past them so quickly and thoroughly. From coach Tom Thibodeau to Towns to Brunson, every part of the New York franchise made it clear that competing with Boston for Eastern Conference supremacy will require a far greater effort on that end of the field.

“We can talk about the offense all you want,” said Towns, who had 12 points and seven rebounds in 23 minutes. “I’ll leave that to you all when you go home and write the stories. But I know we have to play defense for ourselves.”

Boston seemed to continually surprise New York with quick looks in transition, another issue that many players cited as a problem. And according to Second Spectrum, the Celtics made 15 3-pointers on half-court sets that came within the first 12 seconds, which is the most in a game since player tracking began in the 2013-14 season.

“We were in rotation,” said Brunson, who led the Knicks with 22 points in 24 minutes. “It started with Jayson killing a lot of pick-and-roll shots and then we adjusted and he made the right play and got us in rotation.

“So I have to give them the credit. They are a good team. What they do is unique and we were on our heels all night.”

What players on both sides agreed on, however, was that this was only one game in 82. And while Boston fulfilled its stated mission of trying to approach this season as if it were a team contending for the title, rather than a team winning the title, New York is now looking at its 18th NBA championship , how much work still lies ahead of him to reach the desired level this season.

“It’s Game 1,” Thibodeau said. “We haven't had that much time yet. But it's still early and we have to learn from it. So our goal is to get better from this and watch film and I think it was a great test for a team like this, they're already up there.

“It's a good test and we'll learn from it and try to build on what we've done with our habits and everything.”