Brunson: No time to celebrate for Knicks despite series lead over Celtics

Brunson scored 26 of his 39 points in the second half as the Knicks stormed back from 14 points down in the third quarter to win 121-113 in Game 4.

Karl-Anthony Towns added 23 points and 11 rebounds and Mikal Bridges also had 23 for the Knicks, who are on the brink of reaching the finals for the first time since 2000.

The final buzzer was met with jubilant scenes inside Madison Square Garden, though Brunson acknowledged that the job was far from done for the Knicks.

"I was actually telling everyone to get off the court. I was like, it's nothing to celebrate," said Brunson, who finished with a team-best 39 points on 25 shots with 12 assists.

The Knicks could clinch the series with a win in Boston on Thursday, but they were made to work to extend their series advantage in Game 4.

A Derrick White three-pointer gave the Celtics their biggest lead of the night early in the third quarter (72-58), but the Knicks recovered well in the fourth.

Brunson controlled matters and when OG Anunoby grabbed a steal off Jayson Tatum, an incident that left the Celtics star injured, resulted in the Knicks taking a 118-106 lead.

"I was just in a flow and doing whatever. I wasn't really trying to take over. It was just 'whatever we've gotta do'," Brunson said.

"We didn't quit, kept fighting. And that's what's most important. Whenever you get in a hole, you can't quit."

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Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau also lauded his team's fighting spirit in the contest, saying: "They hit us early, and obviously we got into a hole.

"I love the way we fought back, and we showed a lot of toughness and more discipline in the second half and timely plays. Everybody worked together on both ends of the floor."

Though Brunson acknowledged the significance of his team's latest result, he reiterated that their victory only had them one game closer to achieving their goal.

"I think [tonight] was a sense of urgency, desperation. Knowing that we had a great opportunity against a really good team," Brunson said.

"I don't even think we're playing our best basketball yet. We have a team that's still fairly new this year, and we have a long way to go be the best team we can be.