If “statement wins” can happen this early in the NBA season, the Boston Celtics notched one on Tuesday night with a big victory over the visiting New York Knicks, who entered TD Garden as the second-best team in the Eastern Conference.

Celtics superstar Jaylen Brown overcame a clumsy first quarter to drop a game-high 42 points on New York. Brown’s mid-range game was completely unstoppabl e once he caught fire, finishing 16-of-24 from the field on the night to go along with four rebounds and four assists. Brown was also 8-of-9 from the charity stripe.

The Celts used a powerful second quarter to climb out of their first quarter doldrums, beating the Knicks 37-20 in the second period. Boston survived a late push from New York in the fourth, which featured a barrage of three pointers fro

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