White scores 34 to help Celtics stave off elimination with 127-102 Game 5 win over Knicks

BOSTON (AP) — Derrick White had 34 points, including seven 3-pointers, to lead the Boston Celtics to a 127-102 Game 5 win over the New York Knicks on Wednesday night that kept them alive in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The Celtics connected on 22 3-pointers to post their first home victory of the series and first without Jayson Tatum following his season-ending Achilles tendon injury.

The Knicks will try again to win the series Friday in New York. If the Celtics win, Game 7 would be in Boston on Monday.

Jaylen Brown added 26 points and 12 assists. Luke Kornet finished with 10 points, nine rebounds and seven blocks.

The Celtics are looking to become just the 14th team in NBA history to come back from a 3-1 deficit in 294 attempts.

Josh Hart led the Knicks with 24 points despite briefly leaving the game late in the first quarter to close a bloody gash on his face after he took an inadvertent elbow.

Jalen Brunson added 22 points before fouling out with 7:19 to play in the game.

Boston trailed by nine points in the first half but closed the third quarter on a 23-9 run and took a 91-76 lead to the fourth. Brunson spent the final 2:45 of the third on the bench after picking up his fifth foul.

The Celtics kept it going in the final period, pushing their lead as high as 28 points.

The game was highly physical throughout and included a brief face-to-face skirmish between Hart and Brown.

That energy carried over offensively. The Celtics came out hot, getting five 3s from White and 12 total in the opening 24 minutes.

But the Knicks held as much as a nine-point lead, connecting on eight 3s of their own and getting 10 second-chance points. Mitchell Robinson also converted on all four of his free throw attempts in the first half, nullifying the series-long intentional foul strategy Boston employed on him.

When the half ended, the score was knotted 59-59.

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