The New York Knicks needed just one more win to secure their first series sweep against the Philadelphia 76ers since 1999. They won that match and secured a spot in the Eastern Conference finals. It was a match with a three-pointer explosion.
The Knicks got their 25 off the 42 three-point attempts to fall. They were one away from creating a record for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016. Cleveland went on to win the championship that year. I have to say that the New York Knicks haven’t reached that point; however, with a 144-114 triumph over the 76ers, they are in a better position to win their first title since 1973.
In place of OG Anunoby, Deuce McBride started and hit seven three-pointers in the game. He had 4 off 4 in the first quarter itself. Brunson had 22 points, and Hart and Karl-Anthony Towns each scored 17 in this victory.
The New York Knicks’ defense made the 76ers’ team look like a shell. Their star player, Joel Embiid, was restricted to 24 points and five assists.
Their 19.4 point per game margin of victory is the largest through two rounds since the playoffs in 1984. Towns said, “It’s just us being very locked in to the moment.”
This is the Knicks’ second straight East Finals. Last year, they reached the final but lost to Indiana. After that, the Knicks fired the head coach, Tom Thibodeau, and replaced him with Mike Brown.
Here is what he said, “Our guys tried to take it to another level with their focus on the details and their energy and effort level. That’s a lot of the reason why we’re playing pretty good basketball.”
Coming back to the game, Brunson and Hart nailed the first two triples, and that put them ahead immediately. After that, Brunson and Landry Shamet each knocked down a pair of three-pointers, and they finished with 10-for-11 from deep in the first 12 minutes.
More followed in the second quarter and then in the third. Bridges and Towns began the third quarter with four points. Brunson and Hart kept at it and made it hard for the 76ers to stay in the game.
Now that the 76ers are out of the picture, the Knicks will wait for the winner of the Pistons and Cavaliers series to see who they will face in the Eastern Conference finals.
