The Philadelphia 76ers tried to keep New York Knicks fans out of Xfinity Mobile Arena Friday night. They restricted sales on Ticketmaster to people within the Philadelphia area. They donated 500 tickets to local organizations, too.
Still, plenty of Knicks supporters attended Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, made their presence felt and left elated after New York’s 108-94 victory put New York up three games to none. The 76ers are facing a tall task, as no NBA team has overcome a 0-3 deficit to win a series.
On Sunday afternoon, the Knicks will look to complete a sweep of a seven-game series for just the third time in franchise history and first time since 1999 when they defeated the Atlanta Hawks in the conference semifinals. They are also aiming to advance to the conference finals for the second consecutive season after not making it that far since 2000.
During Friday’s game, Knicks fans chanted “MVP” when star guard Jalen Brunson shot free throws and “(Expletive) Embiid” at 76ers center Joel Embiid. They even screamed “Deuce” when guard Miles McBride made a 3 early in the third quarter, referencing his nickname. There were plenty of “Let’s Go Knicks” chants, as well.
Filmmaker Spike Lee and comedian Tracy Morgan, regulars at Knicks games at Madison Square Garden, made the trip Friday, as did former stars Patrick Ewing, John Starks and Allan Houston, each of whom played in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the last time the Knicks were this good.
Early on, it looked like those New York mainstays would head home disappointed. The 76ers went up 9-0 and led by 12 points midway through the first quarter before cooling off. The Knicks took their first lead at 38-35 with 8:20 remaining in the second quarter and never relinquished their advantage.
The Knicks had a 49-33 rebounding advantage and took twice as many free throws (32-16) as the 76ers. And after the 76ers got to within 88-84 in the fourth quarter, the Knicks outscored their opponent 20-10 the rest of the way, as Philadelphia made just four of 15 shots in the final 8:20.
“A great response by our crew,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said. “They’re resilient. They’ve been through a lot as a veteran group, and it showed tonight.”
Brunson finished with a game-high 33 points and nine assists, the 24th time he has scored at least 30 points in a Knicks’ playoff game, setting a franchise record. Mikal Bridges added 23 points and held the 76ers’ guards and wings in check on defense, while Landry Shamet came off the bench and had 15 points, one more than he scored in New York’s first eight playoff games.
Shamet made just five of 18 shots in the postseason entering Friday and was out of the rotation since early in the first round series against the Hawks. But on Friday, he entered late in the first quarter and played 26 minutes and 20 seconds, connecting on five of his six field goals and finishing +20, the best mark on the team.
“He was huge on both ends of the floor,” Brown said. “We needed a spark from somebody when we were down and they hit us in the mouth, and Landry gave it to us. It was a big game on the road and it didn’t faze him.”
Said Bridges: “We talk to him and give him his dap for what he does, but that’s just a true professional. He works so hard and he’s just got that mental killer in himself.”
In all, New York’s reserves outscored Philadelphia’s bench players 29-11, including 23-0 in the first three quarters. Mitchell Robinson, who sat out Game 2 with an illness, returned Friday and had six points and six rebounds in 18 minutes and 57 seconds, the most playing time he’s had all postseason.
Late in the third quarter, the 76ers intentionally fouled Robinson on three consecutive possessions because he had made just 40.8% of his free throws in the regular season and five of 17 free throws in the playoffs. But Robinson made four of six free throws to keep New York ahead. Brown noted that Robinson was also effective in the pick and roll game, allowing the Knicks to get several good shots.
“We ran him longer in stretches at times than what we normally do, but he was great in both directions for us,” Brown said.
The Knicks won even though they played without 6-foot-7 starting wing OG Anunoby, who is averaging 21.4 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game in the playoffs. He had 24 points on 9 of 17 shooting with five rebounds and four steals in New York’s 108-102 Game 2 victory Wednesday night, but he left with 2:31 remaining after sustaining a strained right hamstring. Anunoby is listed as day-to-day.
With Anunoby sidelined, the Knicks relied more on Bridges, who held 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey to 17 points on 8 of 12 shooting, and took turns guarding Philadelphia’s other top players, who all struggled.
Kelly Oubre Jr. led the 76ers with 22 points, a career playoff-high, but he only had seven in the second half. Embiid, who missed Game 2 with a right ankle sprain and right hip soreness, returned but wasn’t fully healthy and finished with 18 points, six rebounds and five assists. Paul George added 15 points, all in the first quarter, and missed his final 10 shots.
“We’re not necessarily switching Mikal on Embiid, but if it happens, he’s just kind of playing without fouling,” Brown said. “Mikal did a lot of good tonight defensively, no matter who he guarded, and he helped us get the win because of it.”
Said Brunson: “Defensively, he creates havoc on and off the ball. It’s just who he is. His instinct, I don’t think you can really teach. But he’s definitely grown as a player every single year, and we truly need that.”
After falling behind two games to one to the Hawks in the first round, the Knicks have now won six consecutive games by an average of 25.8 points. Besides their six-point Game 2 victory over the 76ers, the Knicks have won the other five games in the streak by at least 14 points.
When Brown took the Knicks’ job last July following the firing of Tom Thibodeau, he said the team had a chance to make a deep playoff run. On Friday, he sounded just as confident, although he said he’s taking nothing for granted. Brown was an assistant on NBA championship teams with the San Antonio Spurs in 2003 and the Golden State Warriors in 2017, 2018 and 2022. He noted all those teams took the same approach.
“Nobody in the group, from ownership on down, got ahead of themselves during this run,” Brown said. “They stayed locked in and we worried about the next game and we took the next game one possession at a time. And that’s what this group is definitely trying to do.”
