The Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals and ended a 52-year trophy drought. OG Anunoby scored 28 points in the emphatic 124-113 victory.
Striker Anunoby scored five triples and … point guard Jalen Brunson finished with 25 points for New York to win its first title since the 1973 NBA Finals at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
San Antonio entered the final full of confidence after beating first-place and defending NBA champion Oklahoma City in Saturday’s semifinals, thanks to a magnificent performance from French prodigy Victor Wembanyama.
However, a tenacious and all-around performance from New York dashed San Antonio’s hopes of capping their Cup campaign with a victory. The Knicks limited Wembanyama to 18 points, delivering a balanced offensive performance to pull away in the fourth quarter after trailing by 11 points late in the third.
Seven Knicks players finished in double figures
With Anunoby and Brunson supported by Karl-Anthony Towns (16 points), Jordan Clarkson (15), Tyler Kolek (14) and 11 points each from Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges.
Mitchell Robertson provided a valuable defensive performance off the bench, grabbing 15 rebounds and two blocks.
“OG Anunoby, Tyler Kolek, Jordan Clarkson, Mitchell Robertson… they worked their tails off tonight,” Brunson said after being named tournament MVP.
“We won’t win without them,” Brunson said. “We were losing by 10 points or whatever and we found a way to win. This will be our motto from now on: we will find a way.
San Antonio appeared to be headed for victory when Wembanyama He made a three-pointer from 8.2 yards out with just over two minutes remaining. of the third quarter, giving the Spurs a 92-81 lead.
But Clarkson and Kolek made 3-pointers to cut the Spurs’ lead to five points, and the Knicks went on a rampage in the fourth quarter, outscoring their opponents 35-19 to seal the victory.
The last one standing
Knicks coach Mike Brown said winning the title bodes well for the team’s hopes of winning the NBA Finals in his first season at the helm.
“Anytime you can go to an event where you’re the last one standing and you can hang a banner, especially at the iconic MSG (Madison Square Garden), you take it seriously,” Brown said. “And all of our guys took it seriously.”
San Antonio’s scoring was led by Dylan Harper with 21 points on the bench, while De’Aaron Fox was the standout starter with 16 points.
Spurs coach Mitch Johnson attributed the defeat to collective shortcomings rather than Wembanyama’s performance.
“I think we had a tougher time as a team…We gave up a lot of offensive rebounds, which hurt us in transition,” Johnson said.
“When we played with the right space, but with the right distance and pace, we had some really good chances. And we missed them. I think it was probably more of a team problem than Victor’s individual struggles.”
However, Johnson believes San Antonio has a lot to improve as it pursues leader Oklahoma City in the Western Conference.
“Playing really competitive games against really good teams,” Johnson said. “Experienced and seasoned teams who have been through similar situations. Being able to feel these matches, to work in them, to live in the moment, I think it’s a valuable experience.
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