In the 1956-57 season when the Boston Celtics won their first title, they won the opener against the New York Knicks. In 1962-63 they won their sixth title, opening with back-to-back blowout wins over the Knicks, by 33 in Beantown and 25 in the Big Apple. The last year the Knicks won a title, their first meeting against the Celtics was a 17-point loss. Last year Boston won the first four match-ups, only dropping the last one after their focus had turned to the playoffs.
That’s a whole lede paragraph devoted to what’s no exposé: the Celtics are usually better than the Knicks, often far better, as they were last night curb-stomping the city’s team at the city’s game 132-109, the pièce de résistance a 27-8 first-quarter mollywhopping run.