Knicks Stun Spurs

On June 10th, the New York Knicks set an NBA Finals record; coming back from a 29-point deficit against the San Antonio Spurs. This is the largest comeback in NBA Finals history. With the win the Knicks take a commanding 3-1 lead over the Spurs, needing only one more win to be crowned NBA champions.

The Knicks now have a 95.4% chance of winning the Finals according to the NBA. A championship this season would end a 53-year championship drought for the Knicks, as they last won in 1973, after beating the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Knicks struggled for most of the game, being down at least 15 points for most of the first half, and falling behind 52-81 with 9:40 left in the third quarter. But the Spurs began to get complacent, deciding to focus on guarding the paint, allowing the Knicks to focus on threes and mid range shots. 

The Knicks offense was led by guard Jalen Brunson who had 36 points, and forward OG Anunoby who had 33. Their defense was led by center Karl-Anthony Towns who was able to essentially shut down Spurs star center Victor Wembanyama.

The Knicks took their first lead of the night with 1:22 left in the fourth quarter when Brunson scored on a drive to the basket, making the game 105-104. The Spurs were able to quickly counteract this, scoring two free throws, reclaiming the lead. With 11.1 seconds remaining Anunoby was able to block the shot of Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox, getting the rebound and sprinting towards midcourt. The Knicks called a timeout, inbounding the ball to Brunson with 5.7 seconds left. Brunson missed a 30-foot three, which was rebounded by Anunoby who was able to tip it into the basket with 1.2 seconds remaining. The Spurs were unable to score again. The Knicks won 107-106.

Game five of the Finals will be played in San Antonio on June 13 at 5:30pm, where either the Knicks will seal their first championship in over half of a century, or the Spurs will continue their fight and force a sixth game in New York.

Article by Luke Zamberlan