The Boston Celtics defeated the New York Knicks, 101-99, at TD Garden on Wednesday night.

A first quarter in which only 40 combined points were scored established the fact defense would be the overriding theme of the night. The two squads managed to generate a bit more offense during the middle quarters, but the Knicks (25-27) held just a three-point lead over the Celtics (26-26) heading into the final period. Boston ultimately trailed by as much as seven before finishing the game on a 28-20 run over the final 8:04, with Marcus Smart and Jayson Tatum draining a pair of clutch free throws apiece in the closing seconds to seal the win.

RJ Barrett led the Knicks with 29 points, adding five rebounds and two assists. Julius Randle provided 22 points, nine boards, six assists, three steals and one block. Derrick Rose furnished 11 points and three assists. Elfrid Payton and Alec Burks posted eight points each while dishing out four assists and pulling down eight rebounds, respectively.

Jaylen Brown paced the Celtics with 32 points, complementing them with 10 rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block. Tatum followed with 25 points, 10 boards, five assists and one steal. Smart delivered 17 points, nine assists, four rebounds, one steal and one block. Robert Williams mustered just six points but also totaled 10 rebounds and two blocks.

The Knicks head back home to host the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night, while the Celtics remain home and host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night as well.