Jalen Brunson was the hero in Game 6 as he scored a game-high 40 points – including the eventual game-winner – to lead the New York Knicks to a 116-113 win over the Detroit Pistons to advance to the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
With the score tied at 113 with a little over five seconds remaining, Brunson nailed a three-pointer from the top of the arc to give the Knicks the lead. And that was enough as Pistons guard Malik Beasley couldn’t control a pass from Cade Cunningham and helplessly watched it sail out of bounds on the next possession.
It was a streaky affair on both ends of the court. Leading by as many as 15 in the second quarter, the Knicks lost their rhythm, and by halftime, the Pistons had a two-point lead.
The second half followed much the same pattern – New York went on multiple runs and led by 10 or more for much of the third and early in the fourth quarter, only for the momentum to shift, and with six minutes to go the game was back on level terms.
Despite finding themselves down by seven with 2:35 left, New York ended the game on a 11-1 run to secure the victory and clinch the series 4-2 to move onto the Eastern Conference semifinals. It’s the third consecutive season the Knicks have reached the second round.
The final four games of this series were decided by three points or less, and it was the perfect time for the Knicks captain to come up clutch – Brunson’s 40 points, four rebounds and seven assists were his best performance of an already strong series.
“Jalen’s shot, what can you say? You know, timely. You know, he’s at his best when his best is needed. He’s done it all year. That’s what makes him special,” Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau said post-game.
When asked about the game-winner, the two-time NBA All-Star emphasized the trust he has in his teammates and how their work allows him to perform in high-pressure situations.
“It’s all about us staying poised and having our composure. Obviously, we want to have it throughout the game, but it’s most important at the end. We all have each other’s backs, and we all know what we want to do. And I’m just thankful for my teammates and coaches,” Brunson said of his team’s ability to win tight games.
Brunson was particularly complimentary of Mikal Bridges’ impact: the small forward notched 25 points and had a team-high 68.8 field goal percentage on the night.
“Obviously, everyone’s going to say a lot about the last shot, but throughout the game, the ups and downs of it, we all stay composed. And the way he (Bridges) played, it was… it was tremendous. So, you got to give a lot of credit to my teammates,” Brunson reflected.
Bridges was amped up in his on-court interview discussing how the Knicks came back from the brink with less than three minutes to play: “We’re built for this sh*t. That’s all it is. We built for it. That’s what we kept saying… Stay with it, stay positive and just stay fighting. We built for it.”
New York will face the defending champion Boston Celtics in the next round.
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