Davison Carries No. 3 Maine Celtics To Eastern Conference Finals

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. - The Maine Celtics beat the Westchester Knicks 124-118 on Thursday night to punch their ticket to the NBA G League Eastern Conference Finals for the second consecutive season.

Maine made 20 three-pointers for the second consecutive game, tying the franchise playoff record for triples in a game they previously set on Tuesday against Capital City. The win snaps a seven-game winning streak for the Westchester Knicks as Maine awaits the winner between Indiana and Osceola in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Recently crowned 2024-25 Kia NBA G League MVP JD Davison led Maine with 32 points and  a career high 17 assists. Miles Norris scored a season-high 27 points in a Celtics uniform on 9-12 shooting from the floor and Boston Celtics assignee Jordan Walsh posted a 19-point, 11-rebound double-double. Jordan Schakel buried five three-pointers off the bench for 15 points. Maine shot 47% (47-100) from the floor and 41.7% (20-48) from beyond the arc.

Moses Brown led the Westchester Knicks with a 27-point, 26-rebound double-double. Kevin McCullar Jr. and Jamal Bey each added 21 points for the Knicks in the loss. Westchester finished the game shooting 43.6% (41-94) from the floor and 24.3% (9-37) from three.

Similar to Tuesday's game where Maine started the game 9-for-11 from beyond the arc, the Celtics were red hot in New York to start the game. Jordan Walsh and Drew Peterson both hit shots from deep as Maine jumped out to an 8-2 lead. Miles Norris connected on a triple with 8:30 to go as the Celtics led the Knicks 15-6. Davison drove in the paint, turned on the spin cycle and left it off the glass and in to give the Celtics a 20-8 lead at the 7:30 mark of the first quarter. With 4:39 to go in the first, Davison found Peterson at the top of the key to increase Maine's lead to 13. Westchester finished the quarter on a 9-3 run and Maine led the Knicks 30-23 through one.

Westchester's Pacome Dadiet slashed through the lane and scored at the cup to cut the Celtics' lead down to five at the beginning of the second quarter. Three straight three pointers by Jordan Schakel helped Maine increase their lead back to 12 with 9:53 left in the quarter. The Knicks battled back, and Moses Brown bullied his way for the score to bring Westchester back within five with under six minutes to play. A minute later, Brown scored again off an offensive rebound to make it a 2-point game. Tristan Enaruna made Maine's 10th three-pointer of the first half to put Maine in front 58-51 with under four minutes to go until halftime. Maine knocked down 14 three-pointers (14-26, 53.8%) and led the Knicks 70-61 at halftime. Walsh led Maine with 15 first half points on 6-8 shooting and Jordan Schackel knocked down 4-6 shots from deep for 12 points off the bench. Westchester's Moses Brown was 5-5 from the field with 14 points and 10 rebounds at the break.

The Celtics outscored the Knicks 6-2 to start the second half and a bank shot by Davison gave Maine a 76-63 lead at the 9:18 mark of the third quarter. Westchester continued to hang around, and a three by Kevin McCullar Jr. pulled the Knicks back within four as Maine called timeout with 7:29 left in the quarter. A putback by Westchester's Brown tied the game at 76 with 6:30 to go in the third. Davison dished to Norris for three at the 5:26 mark to help Maine build their lead back up to six. On the next possession, Davison lobbed it up to Hason Ward for the two-handed flush as Maine quickly regained the 84-76 advantage off an 8-0 run. A step back triple by Davison made it an 11-0 run and an 11-point lead for the Celtics. Schackel hit his fifth three of the game to give Maine their largest lead of the night, 100-84 with under a minute to play in the third. Davison scored 15 points in the frame and had 27 points through three quarters as Maine carried a 103-86 lead into the fourth quarter in New York.

Peterson connected on a mid-range jump shot to build Maine's lead up to 19, their largest in the game in the opening minute of the quarter. Brown scored again around the rim with 7:31 remaining in the game to lead a 9-2 Knicks run and pull within 12 of Maine. Three straight trips to the free throw line helped the Knicks outscore Maine 17-6 through the first half of the fourth quarter and pull within six of the Celtics, 107-101. Maine got a much-needed answer in transition as Davison dished to Walsh for the dunk plus the foul to extend their lead back up to 10. Despite cooling off from deep, Maine continued to hold the Knicks at bay as Davison found Norris on the alley-oop to give Maine a 115-105 lead with under three minutes left in the game. A three by Jamal Bey made it a five-point game again with under two minutes remaining. With 1:12 on the clock, Davison, the league's MVP hit a clutch triple to keep Maine in front by seven. A transition slam by Norris plus the foul with 28.7 seconds to go gave Maine a 124-116 lead. The Knicks would score the final bucket, but Maine would get the win, 124-118 to punch their ticket to the Eastern Conference Finals.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: JD Davison was the Player of the Game, leading Maine with 32 points, 17 assists, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals. Davison was 13-28 (46%) shooting from the floor to help lead the Celtics past the Knicks in the second round of the G League Playoffs.

THE ROAD AHEAD: Maine advances to the NBA G League Eastern Conference Finals where they will play the winner between the Osceola Magic and the Indiana Mad Ants on Sunday, April 6th.