Knicks Bounce Back With 102-99 Victory : NBA playoffs: Ewing scores 33 points and has 19 rebounds as New York keeps its hopes alive.

NEW YORK —  Patrick Ewing kept the New York Knicks in the playoffs Wednesday night with 33 points and 19 rebounds in a 102-99 victory over the Boston Celtics.

“Everyone has given us a lot of flak for the way we’ve played in this series, said we were quitting,” Ewing said. “We’re not quitters, and I think we showed that.”

Boston, which scored an NBA record 157 points on 67% shooting in Game 2, saw a much more intense defensive effort by the Knicks.

The Celtics managed to outshoot New York 51.4% to 39.6%, but the Knicks took 27 more shots.

Charles Oakley had 13 rebounds. His six offensive rebounds helped lead New York to a 21-5 advantage in that department.

The fourth game will be Friday night at Madison Square Garden, and if the Knicks win, the fifth and deciding game would be Sunday at Boston Garden, where the Celtics have beaten the Knicks 26 consecutive times since Feb. 29, 1984.

Ewing had 21 points and 16 rebounds at halftime, but he committed his fourth foul early in the third quarter and left with the score tied, 60-60.

But the Knicks outscored Boston, 21-19, and took an 81-79 lead into the fourth quarter.

Ewing returned and scored the first five points of the fourth quarter, giving New York a seven-point lead.

The Knicks expanded the margin to 91-83 with six minutes left, but the Celtics closed to 100-99 on a free throw by Reggie Lewis with 29 seconds remaining.

Kenny Walker hit a jump shot from 15 feet for a three-point lead with 7.6 seconds left.

On the Celtics’ final possession, Larry Bird missed an uncontested three-point attempt.

Bird finished with 31 points, Dennis Johnson 18 and Kevin McHale 17 for the Celtics. Gerald Wilkins had 15 points for New York.