PHILADELPHIA — Jalen Brunson donned the cape and beat the Sixers.
The Knicks point guard dropped 47 points, setting a franchise playoff record, and giving New York a 97-92 win on Sunday afternoon and a 3-1 advantage in the series.
By the end of the game, the crowd was split throughout, but clearly gathered in one corner of New York, and chants of Brunson’s “MVP” echoed throughout the Wells Fargo Center.
He broke the Knicks’ playoff record (two), set by Bernard King in 1984.
Brunson also became the first Knick player to score at least 40 points and have at least 10 assists in a playoff game, but in addition to being the team’s second-leading scorer, Brunson was the main reason Joel Embiid was kept in check. There was also help from OG Anunoby. Latter half.
With Mitchell Robinson injured and Isaiah Hartenstein in foul trouble, Tom Thibodeau replaced Anunoby with Embiid, and every time the Sixers center touched the ball, he was helped by Trapp, which was amazing. It functioned effectively.
The Sixers finished the fourth quarter with just 16 points and only three points in the final five minutes. Embiid, who dropped 50 points in the Sixers’ win on Thursday, scored just 27 points on 7-of-19 shooting Sunday.
The Knicks can decide the series on Tuesday against MSG.
But Sunday certainly wasn’t easy. The visiting team was trailing by as many as 12 points, and aside from Brunson’s heroics, the offense was inefficient.
Donte DiVincenzo and Josh Hart combined for just 3 of 18 shots. Another attacking weapon, Bojan Bogdanovic, was injured in the first half and did not return.
During the series, there was a lot of tough talk from both teams about playing hard and winning physical battles and the Sixers’ dirty plays.
On Sunday, Embiid hit Brunson with an unnecessary forearm in the third quarter, at about the same time Hart unintentionally elbowed Kyle Lowry in the face.
However, there was no culprit. It’s not even technology. The matches were largely quiet and controlled by the referee.
Brunson had a strong performance in the first half, rediscovering his form as a late addition to the MVP candidacy. He had 23 points and seven assists on 10-of-15 shooting during the break.
Bogdanovic limped off the court after just a minute. He was chasing a loose ball alongside Nic Batum, but Batum dove and landed on Bogdanovic’s feet.
According to the Knicks, Bogdanovic limped back to the locker room and was diagnosed with a left ankle contusion.
The Knicks were already missing a key piece without Robinson, the biggest body to compete with Embiid.
Robinson re-injured his surgically repaired ankle in Game 3 on Thursday, a setback compounded by some questionable tactics by Embiid, including a flagrant-1 takedown.
Robinson warmed up but was ejected about 30 minutes before tipoff.
Without a backup center, Hartenstein bought most of the minutes, but predictably ran into foul trouble, committing five fouls in the third quarter, prompting Precious Achiuwa to take action, and Anunoby playing a key role guarding Embiid. It became a movement.
