Knicks playoff hopes hinge on one more chance to control Celtics

The Knicks used up their mulligan Saturday afternoon.They lost their margin of error.Those two stunning comebacks in Boston created that room to breathe.

The rallies from 20 points down in each contest gave them that cushion.But that was eliminated in an ugly Game 3 performance at the Garden, an effort Josh Hart said was “not acceptable.”Monday night, the Knicks will have to be considerably better — better defending the 3-point shot, better on the glass, better on the offensive end.A win, and they would regain control of this Eastern Conference semifinal series, move to within one victory of the franchise’s first berth in the conference finals in 25 years.A loss, and the series is tied, and the Celtics reclaim control.“I think that’s the challenge of the playoffs.

The playoffs are going to challenge you in a lot of different ways,” coach Tom Thibodeau said Sunday.“You can get knocked down.

You got to get back up.Got to keep fighting.

Emotionally the playoffs are a roller coaster.”The Knicks postseason run sure has been one.They have trailed in the fourth quarter in all six of their playoff victories.

They have won just once in four games at the Garden, but are a perfect 5-0 on the road, with all those wins coming by three points or fewer.A fast start would be nice.The Knicks have trailed by at least 20 points in all three games of this series.

They have been playing uphill constantly.It may have worked at TD Garden, but it’s a recipe for disaster, as Game 3 illustrated.

The Knicks have trailed for 128 minutes, 17 seconds in this series and led for only 12:16.Most of that falls upon the starting five, which has been outscored by 29 points in this series as a unit, which has a minus-7.0 NET Rating in the playoffs (meaning it is being outscored by seven points per 100 possessions).In this series, that number is a staggering minus-20.7 across 68 minutes.“We haven’t done a good job imposing our will into the game from the jump,” Hart sai...