This time around, the New York Knicks didn't snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. This time around, they took care of business. They made their last four free throws; they fouled when they were supposed to; and they didn't when they weren't. In a game that saw them jump out to a 33-11 first quarter lead and trail 71-61 midway through the 3rd, the Knicks played about as perfect a fourth quarter as they've played all season long and, as a result, they beat the Philadelphia 76ers 118-115 Thursday night to take the series four games to two.
Make no mistake about it, this was a must win for New York. Yes, they still had a game seven at the Garden to fall back on. But let's be honest: after suffering a crushing last minute loss in game five, a loss in game six would've shifted all the momentum of this series to the Sixers. And there's no way in hell the Knicks were going to take that chance.
On a night when their bench was outscored by the Sixers bench 42-5, the starters led the way. Jalen Brunson had 41 points and 12 assists; Donte DiVencenzo, who'd been missing in action since game two, had his best game of the series with 23 points and seven assists; Josh Hart led all players with 14 rebounds and drilled a critical three pointer with 25 seconds left to put the Knicks ahead for good; and OG Anunoby contributed with 19 points to go along with nine boards.
But Brunson was the star of the show; indeed the entire series. The Knicks MVP became the first player since Oscar Robertson in 1973 to record 35 or more points and 10 or more assists three times in a best of seven series. When you think about how many great players the NBA has had over the years - Julius Irving, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Steph Curry - that Brunson is the only one to tie Robertson's record is quite a feat. He continues to confound his skeptics while dazzling his fans.
To truly appreciate what Brunson has meant to this Knicks team just consider that before Julius Randle went down at the end of January, Brunson was averaging 26.8 points and 6.5 assists per game. Since then, he's averaged 31.6 points and 7.1 assists per game. If you prorate that over an entire year, that would make Brunson second in the NBA scoring, ahead of Giannis Antetokounmpo, and 10th in assists, ahead of Damian Lillard, you know, the guy Stephen A. Smith wanted the Knicks to get instead of Brunson. And to think there were those who ripped Leon Rose for overpaying for this guy. That $104 million contract now looks like the steal of the decade.
So now this incredibly resilient team, with its MVP and depleted bench, gets a few days off to prepare for the Indiana Pacers on Monday. The last time these two teams met was 2013 in the second round. The Pacers won that series 4-2. The Knicks would like nothing more than to avenge that loss.
It won't be easy. The Pacers had the number one offense in the NBA during the regular season, averaging 123.3 points per game. And unlike the Sixers, they have a bench that can score, led by former Knick Obi Toppin. The good news for New York is that while Indiana can score, they also had the fourth worst defense in the league, surrendering an average of 120.2 points per game. Compare to the Pacers, the Sixers are practically the 1963-64 Boston Celtics!
My second round preview will be forthcoming. Suffice to say this will be tough test for the Knicks; even tougher than the Sixers. Tom Thibodeau has his work cut out for him.
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