The Knicks suffered two close heartbreakers in Boston, but last night was a heartbreaker of a different kind at the Garden.
Nothing could be more heartbreaking than a depleted Knicks team facing the Celtics at their best, watching a stiff-as-a-board Amar’e Stoudemire try to fight through a pulled back muscle while Chauncey Billups and his strained left knee sat on the bench in a gray suit.
It was too much to overcome — especially because Carmelo Anthony could not light up the Garden in the Knicks’ first home playoff game in seven years, a night that turned quickly into a nightmare and ended with second-half boos.
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If the Knicks were seeking inspiration from Stoudemire suiting up, they did not get it as they fell behind 22-5 and were destroyed 113-96 in Game 3 to put them in a 3-0 hole and facing elimination in Game 4 tomorrow.
“I feel bad for the fans,” Stoudemire said. “They deserve it.”
No NBA team has ever come back from 0-3. The Knicks, 0-7 vs. Boston this season, are all but dead.
“Amar’e’s not 100 percent; Chauncey was not 100 percent. We’re just trying to find our way on the fly, but I don’t want to make excuses,” said Anthony, who misfired all night in a 4-of-16, 15-point train wreck. “It’s a big challenge for us. We’re in a steep hole right now. But we want to stay positive and redeem ourselves [tomorrow].”
The signature play of this horror show came in the final seconds of the third quarter when Roger Mason Jr., instead of shooting, passed to Bill Walker as the buzzer sounded. It ended Boston’s 34-19 third-quarter blitz that put the Celtics up 86-63 as boos rained from the rafters. But the reality is Mason and Walker would not be in the rotation if the Knicks were at full strength.
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The Big Apple 3 has been reduced to the Big Apple 1 1/2. They still won’t have a nimble Stoudemire tomorrow and may not have Billups.
“There’s no way I’ll be 100 percent by Sunday,” Stoudemire said. “I felt good enough to play, but I wasn’t 100 percent.”
The Celtics finally flexed their defending Eastern Conference champion muscles and ruined the Garden party that was seven years in the making. The Garden was full of life at tip-off, as Stoudemire received the biggest ovation during pregame introductions after deciding to play 65 minutes before tip-off.
But the life went out of the crowd quickly, as the Celtics raced to a 9-0 start, and the Knicks never led.
It was clear on the game’s first possession this might be a sad night as Stoudemire drove and threw up a rushed runner, missing the rim entirely. Stoudemire’s next chance ended similarly, with Kevin Garnett blocking his runner.
Stoudemire played 32 ineffective minutes, was 2-of-8 for seven points with just three rebounds. Most telling, he was a minus-34.
“I was very ginger,” Stoudemire said. “I didn’t really want to draw any contact or make quick, sharp moves. The elevation on my jump shot and driving to the basket, knowing I was going to create contact, made it difficult for me to finish those plays. But definitely I was trying to help with my defensive presence.”
Without Billups on the court, Rajon Rondo exploded for a triple-double and a Celtics franchise playoff record 20 assists. The Celtics, who looked scared in their two razor-close wins in Boston, were feeling their oats most of the night.
The Knicks’ defense, so gritty in Boston, disappeared, leaving Paul Pierce and Ray Allen free at the perimeter. Pierce went off for 38 points on 14-of-19 shooting. Allen collected 32 points, drilling 8-of-11 from 3-point range. The Knicks were lost amidst a sea of Celtic picks all night.
“They were awesome. Ray didn’t miss a shot all night,” Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni said. “We didn’t come out with the necessary pop.”
Anthony had begged his teammates to step up under the dire circumstances and they did not come to his aid, nor did he fuel their fires. He was flat all game, committing five turnovers.
Rookie Landry Fields, who may finally be benched for Game 4, couldn’t hit a shot and went 1-of-5 for two points. Toney Douglas was a deer in headlights trying to contain Rondo.
“I think we came out a little too slow,” Anthony said. “I don’t know if it was the excitement of playing here. They capitalized on our slow start.”
The Knicks rallied to within eight points at halftime, but the Celtics overpowered and outclassed the Knicks in the third.
“They’re like a bug that never dies,” Fields said.
The Knicks, however, may die tomorrow.
marc.berman@nypost.com