Quick Answer
The New York Knicks defeated the Boston Celtics 112–106 on April 9, 2026, at Madison Square Garden. Jalen Brunson led all scorers with 25 points and 10 assists, while Josh Hart added 26 points. For Boston, Jayson Tatum posted a triple-double flirt with 24 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists, though six turnovers hurt the Celtics down the stretch.
Late in the regular season, both teams were jostling for Eastern Conference seeding — and this game had the energy to match. The Celtics came into Madison Square Garden with momentum after a strong stretch run, but the Knicks’ depth and home-court advantage proved decisive. New York’s bench outscored Boston’s starters in spots that mattered most, and a dominant fourth quarter sealed a 112–106 win.
Here’s a full look at the player stats, team numbers, and what the box score tells us about how this game was decided.
Quarter-by-Quarter Scoring
Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
NYK New York Knicks 26 28 27 31 112
BOS Boston Celtics 29 24 30 23 106
The Celtics won the first and third quarters, which is actually a common pattern for a team that loses close games — they controlled stretches but couldn’t close. New York won the second quarter to take a lead into halftime, and then sealed it with a dominant 31-point fourth quarter against Boston’s 23. That 8-point swing in the final period was the margin of victory.
New York Knicks Player Stats
NYK
New York Knicks — 112 Points
Player POS PTS REB AST FG 3PT FT STL BLK TO +/-
Jalen Brunson G 25 1 10 10/19 2/7 3/4 0 0 1 +8
Josh Hart F 26 1 3 10/15 5/7 1/2 1 0 3 +6
Karl-Anthony Towns C 16 12 4 6/12 1/4 3/3 2 0 1 +5
OG Anunoby F 13 4 1 4/10 3/7 2/2 2 0 1 +3
Mikal Bridges G 10 2 6 4/4 2/2 0/0 0 0 0 +17
Mitchell Robinson C 7 7 0 3/4 0/0 1/2 3 1 0 –2
Miles McBride G 4 1 2 1/5 1/4 1/2 1 1 0 –2
Landry Shamet G 3 1 1 1/4 1/3 0/0 0 0 1 –9
Knicks Standouts
Jalen Brunson orchestrated the offense with 25 points on 10-of-19 shooting and a game-high 10 assists against just one turnover — a 10:1 assist-to-turnover ratio that tells you everything about his composure under pressure. His ability to draw fouls and create for others in pick-and-roll situations gave Boston’s defense no clean answers.
Josh Hart was arguably even more efficient, finishing with 26 points on 10-of-15 shooting including a blistering 5-of-7 from three. Hart’s versatility — crashing the glass, defending multiple positions, and knocking down open looks — is exactly why New York values him so highly.
Mikal Bridges finished a quiet but effective 4-of-4 from the field with a team-best +17 plus/minus. He didn’t force shots, moved the ball (six assists), and stayed disciplined on the defensive end — the kind of performance that wins games without showing up on highlight reels.
Karl-Anthony Towns posted a double-double (16 points, 12 rebounds) and shot a perfect 3-of-3 from the free-throw line. His ability to stretch the floor as a stretch-five created real spacing issues for Boston’s bigs.
Boston Celtics Player Stats
BOS
Boston Celtics — 106 Points
Player POS PTS REB AST FG 3PT FT STL BLK TO +/-
Jayson Tatum F 24 13 8 7/22 2/10 8/10 1 1 6 –16
Payton Pritchard G 23 3 6 10/20 3/8 0/0 0 0 2 +4
Baylor Scheierman G 20 4 0 7/8 6/7 0/0 0 0 0 –1
Neemias Queta C 10 10 2 4/6 0/0 2/2 2 0 0 –7
Nikola Vucevic C 10 5 2 4/7 2/4 0/0 0 0 2 +1
Derrick White G 8 3 1 2/10 0/6 4/4 1 0 0 –3
Sam Hauser F 6 2 3 2/7 2/6 0/0 0 0 0 +1
Jordan Walsh G 5 2 1 2/4 1/2 0/0 0 0 0 –9
Celtics Standouts and Struggles
Jayson Tatum put up big numbers — 24 points, 13 rebounds, 8 assists — but his 7-of-22 shooting (31.8%) and six turnovers were costly. His true shooting percentage sat at 45.5%, well below his usual standard. The box score credit looks good, but the minus-16 plus/minus tells a harsher story: when Tatum was on the court, the Celtics got outscored by 16 points.
Payton Pritchard was Boston’s most efficient offensive piece off the bench, scoring 23 points on 10-of-20 shooting with six assists. His second-chance production (5 second-chance points) showed his motor, but his defensive rating of 131 was the worst among Boston’s rotation players.
Baylor Scheierman had a remarkable shooting night — 7-of-8 from the field, 6-of-7 from three-point range — and finished with 20 points. The efficiency was elite, but his 53 bench points collectively could not overcome Tatum’s turnover problems and New York’s fourth-quarter surge.
Derrick White was held to just 8 points on 2-of-10 shooting, going 0-for-6 from three. When White is cold from the perimeter, it removes a critical spacing element from Boston’s system, and New York’s defense clearly schemed to take him off the ball.
Team Stats at a Glance
Field Goal %
53.8%
NYK
45.2%
BOS
Three-Point %
42.9%
NYK
37.2%
BOS
Total Assists
29
NYK
23
BOS
Turnovers
7
NYK
11
BOS
Points in Paint
46
NYK
32
BOS
Bench Points
22
NYK
53
BOS
Total Rebounds
42
NYK
48
BOS
Steals
9
NYK
4
BOS
What Decided This Game
Turnovers Were Boston’s Undoing
The Celtics turned it over 11 times against New York’s 7. New York converted those Boston mistakes into 14 points off turnovers. In a 6-point game, that gap was enormous. Tatum’s six turnovers alone were a significant problem — he was pressing to create and it backfired in the fourth quarter when the game was still close.
New York Dominated Inside
The 46-to-32 advantage in points in the paint for the Knicks is striking, especially considering Boston has long been a paint-dominant team. New York got to the rim effectively — 18-of-24 at the rim for 75% — and the combination of Brunson driving and Towns sealing created real mismatches that Boston had no clean answer for.
Boston’s Bench Outscored New York’s, But It Didn’t Matter
Here’s a genuine surprise in the numbers: Boston’s bench produced 53 points against just 22 from the Knicks’ reserves. Scheierman’s 20 points and Pritchard’s 23 were genuinely excellent bench performances. The problem was that Boston’s starters — particularly Tatum and White — struggled, and New York’s starters are simply one of the best starting fives in the Eastern Conference.
Knicks Shot the Ball Exceptionally Well
New York’s 53.8% field goal percentage and 42.9% from three are both well above their season averages. Hart shooting 71.4% from three and Bridges going a perfect 4-for-4 from the field were outliners, but Brunson’s efficiency (52.6% FG) was very much within his typical range. It was a collective shooting night that Boston’s defense simply couldn’t slow down.
Key Facts from This Game
Jalen Brunson recorded a double-double (25 pts, 10 ast) with just 1 turnover
Josh Hart shot 71.4% from three-point range (5-of-7)
Jayson Tatum’s –16 plus/minus was the worst on the court
Baylor Scheierman shot 85.7% from three (6-of-7) off the bench for Boston
New York held a 46–32 advantage in points in the paint
Boston turned the ball over 11 times; New York generated 14 points off those turnovers
The Knicks’ biggest lead was 13 points
Boston’s biggest lead was 7 points
Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson both posted double-doubles for New York
Mikal Bridges finished at +17, the best plus/minus of any player in the game
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won the Celtics vs Knicks game on April 9, 2026?
The New York Knicks won 112–106 at Madison Square Garden. It was a regular-season matchup with playoff seeding implications for both teams.
Who led the Knicks in scoring?
Josh Hart led New York with 26 points on 10-of-15 shooting, with Jalen Brunson close behind at 25 points and 10 assists.
Who led the Celtics in scoring?
Jayson Tatum led Boston with 24 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists, though he shot just 7-of-22 from the field and committed six turnovers.
What was Payton Pritchard’s stat line?
Pritchard posted 23 points on 10-of-20 shooting with 6 assists and 3 rebounds. He was one of Boston’s most productive players off the bench.
How did Karl-Anthony Towns perform?
Towns recorded a double-double — 16 points and 12 rebounds — while shooting 100% from the free-throw line (3-of-3) and contributing 4 assists.
Did the Celtics and Knicks meet in the 2026 playoffs?
The Celtics were eliminated in the first round by the Philadelphia 76ers (4–3 series loss) before a potential playoff rematch with New York could take shape. The Knicks advanced past Philadelphia in the second round and went on to reach the NBA Finals.
What was the biggest factor in New York’s win?
A combination of superior shooting efficiency (53.8% vs 45.2% from the field), a dominant paint presence (46 vs 32 points in the paint), and far fewer turnovers (7 vs 11) gave New York the edge. A 31–23 fourth quarter closed it out.
Key Takeaways
New York won 112–106 behind Brunson (25 pts, 10 ast) and Hart (26 pts) leading the starters
Tatum’s 24-point, 13-rebound, 8-assist line was undermined by 6 turnovers and a –16 rating
Boston’s bench (53 pts) outscored New York’s bench (22 pts), but starting lineup struggles were decisive
The Knicks controlled the fourth quarter 31–23 and dominated the paint throughout
New York’s 29 assists against only 7 turnovers reflected elite ball movement; Boston’s 11 turnovers proved costly
Baylor Scheierman’s 20-point off-the-bench performance on 6-of-7 three-point shooting was a bright spot for Boston
Both teams finished with solid regular seasons, though Boston was ultimately upset in the first round of the playoffs
Final Thoughts
This game captured something real about both teams at that point in the season. Boston had firepower but couldn’t protect the ball when it mattered. New York’s two-headed attack of Brunson and Hart, supported by the spacing of Towns and the defensive versatility of Anunoby and Bridges, proved to be exactly what their opponents can’t match on any given night.
For Boston fans, the Tatum line would have looked encouraging on paper — but the turnovers, the shooting inefficiency, and the lopsided fourth quarter pointed to the vulnerabilities that Philadelphia would eventually exploit in the first round. The Knicks, meanwhile, showed why they were one of the East’s most complete rosters heading into the postseason.
