The Knicks stormed back from 14 points down in the third quarter to go 3-1 up in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semi-final and are in sight of the finals for the first time since 2000.

The Celtics also lost forward Jayson Tatum, who scored 42 points before being carried off in the fourth quarter with what coach Joe Mazzulla described as a “lower body injury”.

The six-time All Star, who was later seen being taken to the Madison Square Garden locker room in a wheelchair, will have a scan on Tuesday to assess the damage.

“He’ll get the MRI and we’ll see what it is,” said Mazzulla.

“Obviously you’re always concerned about someone’s health. It’s two-fold, we’re concerned about his health and where’s he’s at. And then we’re concerned what we’ve got to do better in game five.”

The Knicks can clinch the series with a win in Boston on Thursday (00:00 BST).

Boston, who won game three on Saturday, started strongly with Tatum and Payton Pritchard leading the charge.

A Derrick White three-pointer gave the Celtics their biggest lead of the night early in the third quarter (72-58) but from then on the Knicks took over, taking an 88-85 lead into the final quarter.

Brunson controlled matters and when OG Anunoby grabbed a steal off Tatum in the incident that left the Celtics star writhing in pain before making a dunk, the Knicks were 118-106 ahead.

“I was just in a flow and doing whatever. I wasn’t really trying to take over. It was just ‘whatever we’ve gotta do’,” Brunson said.

“We didn’t quit, kept fighting. And that’s what’s most important. Whenever you get in a hole you can’t quit.”

Timberwolves edge closer to Western Conference final

The Minnesota Timberwolves went 3-1 up in their Western Conference semi-final series against Golden State Warriors thanks to a 117-110 win on the road.

Anthony Edwards finished with a 30-point tally in the win over the Warriors, who are missing injured star player Stephen Curry.

The Timberwolves hit 17 unanswered points in the the third quarter which helped them build an 85-68 advantage which they never looked like losing.

A win on their home court in game five on Thursday (02:30 BST) will see them advance to the finals.

Edwards revealed a half-time dressing down by Minnesota coach Chris Finch had sparked the second-half revival.

“We came out like we had won the series already, and when we went in at half-time coach said we were playing like losers,” he said.

“He told me I wasn’t defending at a high level, and needed to do better offensively, so in the second half I tried to do that.”

The 28-year-old, who last week was named the Clutch Player of the Year, found the bucket with 4.3 seconds left on the clock to give the Knicks a 116-113 victory in game six.

The victory means the Knicks will face 18-time Championship winners and defending champions the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semi-final play-offs.

“I stay poised and I rely on the trust and the composure that my team-mates give me,” Brunson said.

“None of this happens without them.”

Brunson finished with four rebounds and seven assists alongside his 40-point haul, with Mikal Bridges scoring 25 points and OG Anunoby adding 22 at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.

Clippers level series against Nuggets

James Harden recorded 28 points as the Los Angeles Clippers took their play-off against the Denver Nuggets to game seven with a 111-105 victory in Inglewood, California.

The Clippers needed to win in game six to keep their play-off hopes alive but they struggled against a fine display from Nikola Jokic, who weighed in with 25 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for Denver.

But Harden stole the show, adding eight assists and six rebounds as the Clippers aim for their first NBA Championship.

“James did a great job setting the tone early, scoring the basketball and getting downhill and making the right play,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said.

“Norman [Powell] made some big shots at the end and Kawhi [Leonard] was steady throughout the game. I thought those guys really stepped up and came ready to play.”

The game-seven decider is on 4 May (00:30 BST).

Karl-Anthony Towns added 30 points and 14 rebounds for the Knicks, who have now won 17 of their past 21 games, including 11 of their 13 in December.

Washington, without injured leading scoring Jordan Poole, were led by Justin Champagnie’s 31 points and 10 rebounds for his second career double-double.

Among eight Saturday night NBA games, the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Sacramento Kings 132-122 despite the hosts being without LeBron James, who was missing because of illness.

Anthony Davis scored 36 points with 15 rebounds while Austin Reaves added 26 points and 16 assists for the Lakers.

Sacramento were playing one day after head coach Mike Brown was sacked and interim coach Doug Christie could not prevent the Kings falling to a sixth consecutive defeat.

Elsewhere, Western Conference leaders the Oklahoma City Thunder earned a 10th straight regular-season victory by beating the Charlotte Hornets 106-94.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander again led visiting Thunder’s scorers with 22 points, while Jalen Williams added 20 points as Charlotte lost for a seventh successive game.

Reserve Jonathan Kuminga led with 34 points and Stephen Curry contributed a further 22 as the Golden State Warriors won 109-105 against the Phoenix Suns in San Francisco to end a three-game losing run.

Hosts the Denver Nuggets survived a fourth-quarter rally by the Detroit Pistons as Nikola Jokic scored 37 points and Jamal Murray added 34 in a 134-121 win.

Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey each scored 32 points to help the Philadelphia 76ers earn a 114-111 win over the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City.

The Portland Trail Blazers recorded a 126-122 home victory over the Dallas Mavericks, who were without star player Luka Doncic for another game because of a calf strain.

Jalen Johnson made 28 points and 13 rebounds as the Atlanta Hawks won a third successive game with a 120-110 win at home to the Miami Heat.

There was also a 116-111 win for the Chicago Bulls over the Milwaukee Bucks as Josh Giddey returned from a four-game absence to record a 23-point, 15-rebound, 10-assist triple-double to help end the Bulls’ three-game losing streak.