BOSTON _ The stage was set for Marcus Morris to celebrate, coming up huge late in his return to Boston. But in the end, the Knicks saw the celebration spoiled again.
After Morris hit a 3-pointer to tie the score with 4.7 seconds left, Jayson Tatum answered for the Celtics, beating the buzzer with a jumper to lift the Celtics to a 104-102 win at TD Garden, dropping the Knicks to 1-5 on the season.
Morris exchanged hugs with his former Celtics teammates, blowing kisses to the crowd, but with a 29-point effort, could not leave with what he wanted most _ and what the Knicks needed most.
The last-second shot ruined what had been a solid effort by the Knicks as they shifted strategies and seemed to change their fortunes.
David Fizdale had kept Frank Ntilikina on the bench for all but 18 seconds when Kemba Walker scored 32 points at Madison Square Garden in a one-sided Celtics win over the Knicks last week. And he had stuck to the idea that even with Ntilikina forced into action in a depleted backcourt he would have him coming off the bench as recently as Thursday in practice.
But Friday, as the Knicks went through their morning shootaround with every seat in the stands adorned with a poster of Walker, Fizdale announced that he had a change of heart and was inserting Ntilikina into the starting lineup for the first time this season.
Ntilikina did his part, solidifying the Knicks defense and limiting Walker when he was the primary defender on him. But the Knicks turned to a strategy of almost constant switching, leaving mismatches all over the floor. And in the end, Walker did his damage, scoring 33 points.
The Knicks have more issues than just figuring out how to use Ntilikina. Shooting woes, turnovers in bunches and untimely defensive lapses spoiled what was a tough fight. The frustration showed at the end as Morris had to be dragged away by Julius Randle after he took a finger to the eye and after calling timeout, angrily tried to get to the officials to voice his gripe.
The Knicks were without Dennis Smith Jr. (bereavement) and Elfrid Payton (strained right hamstring) again and lost Mitchell Robinson for much of the second half as he suffered a sprained left ring finger (X-rays negative).
Morris, facing the team that he spent the last two seasons playing for and the team that did not try to bring him back as a free agent, seemed to take over late. He hit a corner 3-pointer with 3:55 remaining to close the gap to 92-91.
The Knicks seemed to get a stop as Marcus Smart appeared to lose the ball, but a challenge by Boston coach Brad Stevens was upheld, overturning the call and giving Boston back possession. Walker delivered, hitting a 3-pointer at the top of the key with Ntilikina defending to up the lead to four.
Unlike last week in New York when the Celtics ran away in the fourth quarter, the Knicks remained close. Morris delivered again, hitting a 3-pointer with 2:38 left and it was a one-point game. After Morris went out with the finger to the eye, Walker hit two free throws and Tatum made a layup to put the Celtics ahead by five. Randle hit one of two from the line and Smart answered at the other end doing the same. Morris, inserted back in the game, was fouled shooting a 3 with 57.6 seconds left. He made 2 of 3 to make it a one-possession game with the Celtics up 100-97.
After Walker misfired the Knicks got the ball back with 28.4 seconds left. Morris was fouled away from the ball by Tatum and hit two free throws, closing it to a one-point game with 17.7 seconds remaining. Walker went to the line with 13.5 seconds left and drained both shots to push the lead back to three. But when rookie RJ Barrett misfired on a quick drive, Kevin Knox got the rebound and kicked it out to Morris, who converted again _ tying the game with the open 3-point field goal with 4.7 seconds to play.
Less than a minute into the game Ntilikina made his presence known on the defensive end, chasing down Marcus Smart to block a breakaway layup and knocking the ball out off of Smart. By the time the game was over he had three steals to go along with the blocked shot.
He actually found himself defending Walker for an entire possession rarely as the Knicks were switching constantly. Ntilikina opened eyes in helping France defeat the United States National Team this summer in the FIBA World Cup. He helped limit Walker to just 2-of-9 shooting that night and also spurred the French offense in the fourth quarter, scoring seven of his 11 points.
"I'm happy about the opportunity," Ntilikina said. "But we know, like I always say, it doesn't change anything about the way I prepare for this game. Either it'd be starting or coming off the bench, all players have got to be ready. It's always the same mindset."
