New York eliminated Boston and advanced to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 25 years

(Patria) - The New York Knicks advanced to the Eastern Conference finals after convincingly defeating the Boston Celtics 119-81 in the sixth game of the semifinal series last night.

Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby each scored 23 points for the Knicks, who reached the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2000.

Mikal Bridges added 22 points, and Karl-Anthony Towns had 21 points and 12 rebounds for New York, which led by as many as 41 points at one point in the game.

The Knicks closed out the best-of-seven series with the largest winning margin in playoff history for the franchise.

- There's more to come. We're not done. We came out tonight and played hard and got the job done. But our season is not over. We have a lot more to do - said Bridges.

The defending NBA champion Boston was led by Jaylen Brown, who scored 20 points along with six rebounds and six assists.

New York shot 46.2 percent from the field, including 16 of 45 (35.6 percent) from three-point range, and dominated the boards (55-36).

Payton Pritchard scored 11 points, and Al Horford added 10 for Boston, which shot 36 percent and was 12 of 40 (30 percent) from beyond the arc.

New York led from the start, taking a 26-20 lead after the first quarter, then opened the second quarter with a 16-4 run to lead by 18 points midway through the period.

At halftime, the Knicks led 64-37, and by the end of the third quarter, they had a 33-point lead. Anunoby then hit a couple of three-pointers in a 10-0 run, pushing the New York lead past 40 points (92-51) with 1:50 left in the quarter.

This is the largest margin in a series for the Knicks since 1970, when they beat the Milwaukee Bucks by 36 points in the decisive fifth game of the Eastern Division finals.

The Knicks will face the Indiana Pacers in the conference finals, with the first game scheduled for Wednesday in New York.