Knicks Survive Spurs Rally, Take 2-0 NBA Finals Lead
The New York Knicks are heading back to the Big Apple, sitting just two victories away from an NBA title that the city has craved for decades. For Filipino fans who bleed basketball, this series is delivering the kind of high drama we usually reserve for our own PBA finals.
Jalen Brunson delivered the final blow for New York, hitting the tie-breaking free throw with under ten seconds left after a Victor Wembanyama turnover. Wembanyama had one last chance to redeem the error, but his jumper clanked off the rim at the buzzer. The Knicks survived, 105-104, and grabbed a 2-0 series stranglehold.
What a ballgame,
Knicks coach Mike Brown marveled after the frantic finish.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 21 points and 13 rebounds, while Brunson and Mikal Bridges each scored 20 for the Knicks. They have now won 13 straight, the second-longest streak by any team in NBA playoff history.
New York City showed up. The fans showed up. The energy showed up. And we found a way to get it done,
Towns said.
A Historic Road Start
The Knicks are now just the third team to win the first two games of the finals on the road. They join Michael Jordan and the 1993 Chicago Bulls, and Hakeem Olajuwon and the 1995 Houston Rockets. Both of those teams won championships. The Bulls needed six games to oust the Phoenix Suns, while the Rockets swept the Magic after winning those first two in Orlando. The Knicks, seeking their first championship since 1973, are in position to join them.
Spurs Show Never Say Die Puso
Wembanyama, after a very quiet first half, scored 29 points. De'Aaron Fox had 20 for San Antonio. The Spurs were down 14 midway through the fourth but showed that legendary never say die spirit, a trait deeply admired on local hardcourts, scoring the next 14 points to tie the game.
The faithful in San Antonio were left praying for a miracle, but the Knicks had other plans. Wembanyama's three-point play with 57 seconds left gave the Spurs their first lead in nearly two full quarters, putting San Antonio up 104-102. They played with pure puso, but it was not quite enough.
We showed tremendous desperation, urgency and competitive response. Hopefully we can try to bottle that up and try to play to that same level,
Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said.
We can't change the past. We're already thinking about Game 3,
Wembanyama said.
The Series Shifts to the Garden
The Knicks got the last three points, all from Brunson. He scored on the next possession, just his seventh basket in 24 shots on the night, and the game was tied. Wembanyama missed a long jumper, OG Anunoby grabbed the rebound for New York with 30 seconds left, and the Knicks called time.
The Spurs got a stop, but Wembanyama threw the ball away. Brunson got fouled, the Knicks had the lead back, and before long Spurs fans were filing out of the arena, possibly for the final time this season. The Spurs called time with 7.5 seconds remaining. Fox took the inbound pass, then set up Wembanyama for a jumper that would have won it. The shot bounced off the rim, and it was over.
We had to get a stop. We hadn't gotten a stop all quarter,
Towns said.
They got their stop. Next stop is New York. Game 3 is at Madison Square Garden on Monday night. President Donald Trump, a native New Yorker, plans on attending. Ticket prices on the secondary market for the worst seats at MSG were approaching $9,000 apiece on Friday night. Fans, including the massive Filipino diaspora in New York, are evidently willing to pay top dollar just to be in the building as the team nears its first championship in 53 years.