Knicks, Nets Both Go Down in Respective Game 3

 HAWKS 105 - KNICKS 94

A second quarter implosion proved to be too much to overcome, as the Knicks dropped a 105-94 decision to the Atlanta Hawks in Game 3 of their first round playoff series. The Hawks now lead the best-of-seven 2-1. 

Julius Randle once again came up small for the Knickenbockers, hitting only two of his 15 shots from the floor, including going 0-for-4 in a second quarter where he was completely invisible. 

The only player to even play well in a Knicks uniform was Derrick Rose, who was once again fantastic. Rose scored 30 points for New York, was 13-for-25 from the floor, and even hit on three-of-five shooting from downtown. He was marvelous, but he couldn't carry a team that couldn't hit a shot. 

The Hawks were just too consistent, too often, and the Knicks couldn't slow them down. Trea Young led the way with an 8-for-19 shooting evening with 21 points to lead Atlanta. 

Atlanta can take a strangle hold on the series on Sunday. 

CELTICS 125 - NETS 119 

Meanwhile, things could be getting really interesting for the Nets, who fell 125-119 to Boston in Game 3. Brookyln still leads the series 2-1. However with momentum on their side now, and a crowd of 17,000 expected Sunday afternoon at TD Banks Arena, this series is far from over. 

Yes, Kevin Durant and James Harden had big nights. The former OKC Thunder stars combined to score 80 points in defeat, with Harden leading the way with 41. 

However the third leg of the Big Three was nowhere to be seen. Kyrie Irving may have been their physically, but he couldn't knock down shots, scoring only 16 points. The worse part? Nobody on the bench could contribute for Brookyln. 

Hence the problem with the Nets, they have no depth beyond the Big 3. 

On the other hand, Boston's Jayson Tatum put the Celtics on his back and destroyed the Nets with 50 points of his own on 16-for-30 shooting. He even nailed 5-of-11 three-point attempts. 

Even Boston's Marcus Smart got in on the action, adding 23 points of his own in the victory.