Knicks vs. 76ers: History in the making, and other things to watch for in Game 2
Knicks guard Jalen Brunson drives against Philadelphia 76ers forward Paul George in the third quarter aduringn Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals at Madison Square Garden on Monday. Credit: Newsday/J. Conrad Williams
The Knicks are trying not to get ahead of themselves, so they spent much of the postgame media sessions Monday night the way they did the two days prepping for that game — downplaying just how well they are playing. But it’s hard to ignore what they have done and the question now is basically just, can they keep it up to get through the Eastern Conference and back to an NBA Final?
History in the making
The Knicks have now compiled the greatest postseason marks for margin of victory in consecutive games (90 between Game 6 against Atlanta and Game 1 of this series), over three games and over a four-game span. But Jalen Brunson has remained adamant that it means nothing moving forward. He warned that the team the Knicks saw Monday is not the one that they will see on Wednesday in Game 2 — but that the Knicks play will help them even if it’s not a one-sided affair.
“I just feel like our focus has been better,” Brunson said. “Our attention to detail has been better. Honestly, I think those two are very important for us and we’ve got to continue to do so. Yes, it’s turned into obviously big wins, but those attention to detail things are going to help us in the close ones, as well. We’ve got to continue to stay focused.”
Foul play
The Knicks didn’t pay for it Monday in Game 1, but Mike Brown was quick to point out that one correction the team has to make is defending without fouling. That mostly means not falling for Joel Embiid’s style of play, which you can call crafty or flopping and it’s really a combination of both. But it did work to get Karl-Anthony Towns and Mitchell Robinson in early foul trouble.
“We have to be better with our fouling,” Brown said. “We can’t expect them to shoot 34 free-throw attempts. Obviously, I have to watch the film. I’m not sure if all of them were fouls or not, but we can’t expect them to go to the free-throw line 34 times and us to win the way we did. So we have to be better at keeping them off the free-throw line. But give our guys credit. They tried to do the right thing. Against a guy like [Tyrese] Maxey, you gotta keep giving multiple efforts. He just doesn’t stop. Against Joel, you gotta make sure that you keep trying to show your hands and stay down on the shot fakes, because both two guys together are a load, and individually, they’re a load.”
Shooting stars
One thing that the Knicks can’t count on Wednesday is that they will shoot the way they did in Game 1, 63.1% overall — and it was better before they gave way to the end of the bench players for nearly the entire fourth quarter. OG Anunoby has been a revelation, though, converting 19-for-32 from three-point range in the postseason.
KNICKS VS. SIXERS SCHEDULE
Game 1: Knicks 137, 76ers 98
Game 2: Philadelphia at New York, Wednesday, 7 p.m. on ESPN
Game 3: New York at Philadelphia, Friday, 7 p.m. on Prime Video
Game 4: New York at Philadelphia, Sunday, 3:30 p.m. on ABC
Game 5: Philadelphia at New York, Tuesday May 12*
Game 6: New York at Philadelphia, Thursday May 14*
Game 7: Philadelphia at New York, Sunday May 17*
* if necessary
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
