The New York Knicks have won Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Led by Jalen Brunson, New York rallied from a 14-point deficit to defeat the San Antonio Spurs 105-95 on the road.
The stars of both teams were on point from the start. Brunson opened the Finals with a three-pointer, and Wembanyama answered right away. The Knicks got off to the better start and led 12-7 early on before the Spurs picked up the pace. Dylan Harper, in particular, brought a breath of fresh air after coming off the bench. The rookie scored ten quick points and led San Antonio on a 20-3 run. The Spurs completely turned the game around and led 27-19 after the first quarter.
Things got even worse for the Knicks when Brunson had to briefly head to the locker room after a play with Harrison Barnes. However, the guard returned and immediately brought his team back into the game. With eight straight points, he briefly turned the game back in New York’s favor. But the Spurs had answers ready. Keldon Johnson hit a crucial three-pointer before Julian Champagnie went on a tear with three straight three-pointers. The New York native scored 15 points on five-of-six three-pointers in just 14 minutes and also hit the buzzer-beater to give the Spurs a 55-48 halftime lead.
Spurs squander lead: Knicks turn it on midway through the third quarter
San Antonio continued to control the game early in the second half and extended their lead to 14 points. Shortly thereafter, however, Wembanyama had to leave the court injured. The Knicks seized the opportunity immediately. Karl-Anthony Towns dominated the offensive boards, while Brunson repeatedly drove into the paint. An and-one by Towns off an offensive rebound brought New York back into the game, before Brunson tied the score at 71-71 with a pull-up jumper. After three quarters, the game was wide open at 76-76.
The final quarter turned into a real back-and-forth battle. O.G. Anunoby hit two crucial three-pointers in a row, and Brunson added six straight points to put the Knicks ahead 94-86. But the Spurs answered again, going on a 9-0 run to take the lead. New York then went more than four minutes without scoring before Brunson sank a crucial three-pointer from the corner to make it 97-95. After a turnover by Wembanyama, the guard also hit a difficult fadeaway jumper with 38 seconds left to make it 101-95, effectively deciding the game single-handedly.
Brunson scored 30 points, 13 of them in the fourth quarter. Towns finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Josh Hart contributed a strong 15 rebounds and six assists (4 steals) despite scoring only three points. For the Spurs, Wembanyama recorded 26 points and 12 rebounds, but made only six of his 21 field goal attempts.
