Recap Basketball Wiretap

OG Anunoby tipped in a missed Jalen Brunson three-pointer with 1.2 seconds remaining as the New York Knicks completed a record 29-point comeback to defeat the San Antonio Spurs 107-106 Wednesday night, taking a 3-1 series lead in the NBA Finals.

The rally is the largest in NBA Finals history, surpassing the 24-point deficit Boston Celtics overcame against the Los Angeles Lakers in 2008. The Spurs led 81-52 with 9:40 remaining in the third quarter before the Knicks outscored them 58-30 the rest of the way.

Brunson finished with 36 points and Anunoby added 33, snatching the rebound off Brunson's long attempt that bounced off the front of the rim and tapping it in with his right hand.

"I don't know if there was a play bigger than any other play in the history of Knicks basketball," said Knicks coach Mike Brown. "I told OG as big, as strong, as athletic as he is, he's got to be a monster on the offensive glass tonight."

San Antonio shot 11-for-16 from three in the first half before going ice cold, finishing 3-for-17 beyond the arc after halftime.

"We got on our heels, we missed some shots," said Spurs coach Mitch Johnson. "It's disappointing, to say the least."

Victor Wembanyama posted 24 points and 13 rebounds but shot 9-for-25 from the field and missed two free throws with 1:47 left and San Antonio leading 104-103. Dylan Harper scored 21 points while De'Aaron Fox and Devin Vassell each added 18 for the Spurs.

"I can't really explain it right now," said Wembanyama. "We clearly weren't the most hungry in the second half."

Game 5 is Saturday night in San Antonio with the Spurs favored by 5.5 points.

Victor Wembanyama delivered 32 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists Monday night as the San Antonio Spurs defeated the New York Knicks 115-111 in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, cutting New York's series lead to 2-1 and snapping the Knicks' 13-game postseason winning streak.

The victory gave the Spurs their first Finals win and handed the Knicks their first loss in 46 days, ending the second-longest winning streak in NBA playoff history. New York's previous defeat came April 23 against the Atlanta Hawks in Game 3 of the first round.

"At home, it really feels like playing six against five. Here, it feels like five against six," said Wembanyama. "It really shows what teams are made of."

San Antonio jumped out to a double-digit lead within five minutes, making nine of its first 11 shots and leading 33-22 after the first quarter. The Knicks rallied to take a 64-57 halftime advantage, but the Spurs regained control in the third quarter. Stephon Castle's three-pointer with 1:53 remaining put San Antonio ahead 111-104, and his two free throws with 6.8 seconds left sealed the outcome. Castle finished with 23 points. De'Aaron Fox also hit key shots down the stretch.

Jalen Brunson scored 32 points and OG Anunoby added 28 for New York. Karl-Anthony Towns was held to 11 points and Mikal Bridges was hampered by foul trouble.

"I tell the guys, it's a seven-game series for a reason," said Knicks coach Mike Brown. "They are a great team. They are well-coached. They have an iconic player. It's not going to be easy."

Brown also expressed frustration over San Antonio's 24-8 free throw attempt advantage in the second half.

The result kept the Spurs alive in their bid to become the first team in NBA history to win the Finals after dropping the opening two games at home. Game 4 is Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden, with Game 5 set for Saturday in San Antonio.

"I'm sure Victor has numerous sources of motivation," said Spurs coach Mitch Johnson. "I don't think any of us are surprised or expect anything different than a strong performance."

The New York Knicks return to Madison Square Garden with a 2-0 NBA Finals lead after defeating the San Antonio Spurs 105-104 on Friday night in Game 2. Jalen Brunson converted a decisive free throw with 9.5 seconds remaining, sealing a victory that has the Knicks two wins from their first championship since 1973.

The winning sequence began when Victor Wembanyama threw the ball away with the game tied at 104-104. Brunson drew the foul, sank the go-ahead free throw and Wembanyama's final jumper rolled off the rim.

"What a ballgame," said Knicks coach Mike Brown.

Karl-Anthony Towns posted 21 points and 13 rebounds. Brunson and Mikal Bridges each scored 20 as New York extended its winning streak to 13 straight games, second in NBA playoff history behind the 2017 Golden State Warriors.

"New York City showed up," said Towns. "The fans showed up. The energy showed up. And we found a way to get it done."

The Knicks became just the third team to claim the first two Finals games on the road, joining Michael Jordan's 1993 Chicago Bulls and Hakeem Olajuwon's 1995 Houston Rockets. Both of those clubs went on to win titles.

Wembanyama finished with 29 points after a subdued first half. De'Aaron Fox added 20 for San Antonio, which rallied from 14 points down in the fourth quarter to briefly take a 104-102 lead on a Wembanyama three-point play.

"We can't change the past," said Wembanyama. "We're already thinking about Game 3."

The series shifts to Madison Square Garden for Game 3 on Monday. Secondary-market tickets for the worst seats were exceeding $11,000 Friday, reflecting the historic nature of the moment for a franchise and city that has waited 53 years.

"We showed tremendous desperation, urgency and competitive response," said Spurs coach Mitch Johnson. "Hopefully we can try to bottle that up ... and try to play to that same level."

Jalen Brunson scored 30 points and the New York Knicks overcame a 14-point second-half deficit to defeat the San Antonio Spurs 105-95 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday night in San Antonio at Frost Bank Center.

Karl-Anthony Towns recorded 18 points and 12 rebounds, while OG Anunoby added 17 points. The Knicks closed the game on an 11-0 run to secure the road victory.

The win extended New York's postseason winning streak to 12 consecutive games, matching the second-longest single-postseason run in NBA history. The 1999 Spurs and 2017 Warriors each hit that mark before claiming championships.

Brunson delivered 13 of his points in the fourth quarter alone, including a spinning jumper while falling to the floor with 38 seconds remaining that effectively closed out San Antonio.

"He's a gamer, man," said Knicks coach Mike Brown. "In the biggest moments, he shows up. That's what MVPs are supposed to do."

Victor Wembanyama posted 26 points and 12 rebounds for the Spurs but shot just 6-for-21 from the field in his Finals debut. Stephon Castle contributed 17 points, with Julian Champagnie and Dylan Harper each adding 16. Champagnie and Harper scored most of their points in the first half. 

"I was bad tonight," Wembanyama said. "It's not more complicated than that."

The Knicks also made history Wednesday, becoming the first team to defeat San Antonio in a Game 1 of the NBA Finals. The Spurs had gone 6-0 in such games previously. New York has now won seven straight road playoff games by double digits, the longest such stretch in league history.

Game 2 is scheduled for Friday night in San Antonio with the Spurs favored by 5.5 points.

"We have a long way to go," Brunson said.

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Jalen Williams scored just one point in 10 minutes in his return from a left hamstring strain as the Oklahoma City Thunder were routed 118-91 by the San Antonio Spurs in Game 6 Thursday.

Williams was upgraded from questionable to available shortly before tipoff. He came off the bench for the first time since December 2022 and served as the ninth man in Mark Daigneault's rotation, finishing with two turnovers and a minus-18 rating.

"He's obviously not 100%," said Daigneault. "He didn't know what to expect. I didn't know what to expect. He hasn't done a full return to play protocol like he would if this was the regular season, and yet he just wants to do whatever he can to contribute. I give him a lot of credit to get himself out there. He's certainly not the reason we lost."

Williams declined to speak with reporters after the game.

San Antonio erupted for a 20-0 run in the third quarter to turn a competitive game into a blowout. Daigneault remained noncommittal about Williams' role in Game 7.

The Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the San Antonio Spurs 127-114 to win Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals and take a 3-2 series lead.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander lead the Thunder with 32 points and nine assists, though he committed six turnovers in the win.

"I always say we're a team out there," said Gilgeous-Alexander. "We don't get this far, I don't have this individual success, this team doesn't have the success without all 15 guys in the locker room."

Chet Holmgren finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Alex Caruso had 22 points and six assists. Making his first career playoff start, Jared McCain scored 18 out of his 20 points in the second half.

"He's played in the most big games on this team," Gilgeous-Alexander said of Caruso. "That experience you can't recreate or manufacture. AC isn't some uber-talented guy. ... But he's one of -- if not the best competitor in the NBA night in and night out. He wears that and he sets that tone for us as a group, and it's come full-fledged this series with guys out and him having to step up."

Stephon Castle lead the Spurs with 24 points. Victor Wembanyama had 20 points and six rebounds but shot just 4-of-15 from the field.

Wembanyama also shot 3-of-11 with Isaiah Hartenstein as his main defender.

"It's a team thing," Hartenstein said of his defense. "With any great player, you're not going to stop him with one player. So it's going in there, just making his looks hard, making sure he just doesn't get anything easy."

Game 6 of the series takes place on Thursday in San Antonio with the Spurs favored by 3.5 points. The Thunder are -450 favorites to win one of the next two games to advance to the Finals, giving them an 82 percent implied probability.