Celtics guard Tony Allen made an unexpected return to the court Friday night against the Knicks (recap here). Before the game, coach Doc Rivers said Allen, who underwent right ankle surgery in June, would not play until Sunday against the Nets.

Allen credits strength and conditioning coach Bryan Doo for his expedited comeback.

“He warmed me up pretty good, got to shoot a couple of jump shots, felt good on my landing,” Allen told WEEI.com after the game. “I just thought I’d give it a shot.”

Allen went scoreless (0-2 FG)  in eight minutes of play, contributing an assist and a steal while committing two turnovers and two fouls. He wasn’t playing for the box score, though. This was a test of his recovery.

“I felt good. I did some good things, I did some bad things. But most importantly, I just want to see how my ankle’s going to act tomorrow,” he said. “I got a little hands on deflections, my man couldn’t get past me, [but I] turned it over, being too aggressive, and didn’t let the game come to me are the bad things. But for the most part I was out there, I got up and down the court. Now I’ve got to see how it’s going to feel tomorrow when I wake up.”

For now, his anke bothers him. He soaked his foot in ice and noticeably favored it as he walked in the locker room after the game. But Allen is taking it one day at a time.

“It’s pretty sore right now but I can’t be [psychic Miss] Cleo in this situation to tell you how I’m going to be tomorrow,” he said. “So we’ll see what’s good. “