Celtics Or Knicks? These Key Stats Suggest Game 6 Outcome

Recent history favors as a certain side as the Celtics and the Knicks gear up for battle Friday night at Madison Square Garden.

New York had a golden opportunity to eliminate Boston and punch its ticket to the Eastern Conference finals Wednesday night at TD Garden. But Jalen Brunson and company failed to take advantage of the Jayson Tatum-less C’s, who restored optimism for the remainder of the best-of-seven series with how well they executed in Game 5.

The Knicks will be back on their home court for Game 6, but that might not be a distinct advantage for Tom Thibodeau’s side. As ESPN pointed out Thursday, New York lost the last five games in which it had an opportunity to seal a postseason series at Madison Square Garden. Furthermore, Boston won its last five road playoff games in which it faced elimination.

Oddsmakers certainly aren’t ready to pencil the Knicks in as the Indiana Pacers’ opponent for Round 3 either. Even with New York playing before its diehard fanbase Friday and Boston still figuring out life without Tatum, the East’s third seed is a mere 2.5-point favorite at FanDuel Sportsbook for Game 6.

To be clear, there are also reasons to feel confident in the Knicks’ chances of eliminating the Celtics after taking a punch to the mouth Wednesday. But we shouldn’t be at all surprised if the longtime rivals end up meeting Monday night at TD Garden with the stakes higher than ever.