The Celtics are eliminated from the NBA Cup after a narrow win for the Knicks

The Celtics failed to advance out of NBA Cup pool play on Tuesday night after a needed result didn’t go their way. Boston was not in action on Tuesday after finishing NBA Cup pool play with a 3-1 record, but was still alive for a wild-card spot earlier in the evening based on tiebreakers.

The Celtics needed favorable results in two games (Bucks-Pistons + Knicks-Magic) to advance to the knockout rounds via a point difference tiebreaker. The evening started well for Boston in this regard, as the Bucks beat the Pistons by 21 points, securing the necessary lead (5+ points) needed to give Boston the decisive lead over the Pistons, who also had The record in billiards ended 3:1.

The easiest way for Boston to move forward with a big Bucks win would have been a Magic victory in New York, but it quickly became clear that wasn’t going to happen Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden. Instead, the Knicks built a 20-point halftime lead over Orlando and extended their lead to 31 points at the end of three quarters.

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This huge lead brought into play another unlikely scenario of Boston advancing (the Knicks beat the Magic by more than 37 points) in the second half of the Knicks-Magic match, with the Knicks leading by as many as 37 points in the third quarter. However, Orlando fought back enough in the fourth quarter to keep the margin of victory well below 37 points and secured the tiebreaker against Boston with a higher point difference in group play. Here is the complete wild card standings that led to Boston’s elimination.

Wildcard standings in the NBA Cup

Orlando 3-1 +45 (point difference)

Boston 3-1 +23

Detroit 3-1 +7

The Bucks, Magic, Knicks and Hawks advance to the knockout rounds, while the Celtics are eliminated from the NBA Cup. These teams will face off in the quarterfinals next week on either Tuesday or Wednesday night, with the Bucks taking on the Magic and the Knicks taking on the Hawks.

The Celtics will have two additional games added to their regular season schedule. These games will be announced late Tuesday evening after NBA Cup pool play ends. These games will take place on the 12th/13th. December and 15th/16th December, giving Boston only two games over an 11-day period from December 8th to 18th.