In the first round of G2, the Knicks defeated the 76ers 104-101 at home, leading 2-0.
The plot of this game can be said to be quite explosive, the 76ers led two and a half quarters, were overtaken by the Knicks in the middle of the third quarter, and halfway through the fourth quarter, the Knicks still led by 5 points at 94-89;
In the next five minutes, the Knicks' offense suddenly lost power, and there was only one open game goal in the first half of the quarter, and the 76ers went on a 12-2 run to lead by five points with half a minute remaining.
Do you think that's the end? No, in the crucial offensive round, Brunson hit a three-pointer, and then the 76ers served from the baseline, Hart steals Maxey and passes DiVincenzo;
DiVincenzo missed the first three-point shot, Hatten grabbed the offensive rebound, passed Anunoby, and then gave the ball to DiVincenzo, and the second three-point shot finally hit, and the Knicks overtook by 1 point;
At this point, with 13 seconds left in the game, the 76ers still had a chance, and in the next round, Maxey's layup was hatted by Hatten, and Anunoby grabbed the rebound;
With only 6.6 seconds left, the 76ers quickly fouled, Anunoby hit both free throws, and the Knicks led 104-101 to ensure undefeated.
From behind to leading and then to falling behind, and the final 30 seconds of the comeback, it was a really wonderful victory for the Knicks, and each of their main players played well.
Anunoby had 10 points and 4 rebounds, provided a key assist for DiVincenzo, made two key free throws, and successfully prevented Embiid's game-tying three-pointer;
Hatten was 7-of-8 from the field, with an efficient 14 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocks.
The most wonderful thing was the three Villanova brothers of the Knicks, who had 64 points, 27 rebounds and 12 assists on this occasion.
Let's talk about Brunson first, objectively speaking, Brunson's offense was not good, although he got 24 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists, but he shot 8 of 29 and 1 of 6 three-pointers, and the efficiency was not good.
It is worth mentioning that Brunson's efficiency in G1 is not good, shooting 8 of 26, scoring 22 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists, but Brunson is definitely a player who can change the opponent's defense, and the Knicks need him to hold the ball to be more threatening.
DiVincenzo made the all-important three-pointer, and he finished with 19 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, including 4-of-8 three-pointers, with a team-high plus/minus of +11.
Like Brunson, DiVincenzo had a slump in G1, shooting 3-of-10 from the field and scoring just eight points, but he regained his touch in this game - the playoffs weren't friendly to diminutive guards, DiVincenzo is back, and Brunson needs to adjust.
The most commendable of all is Hart.
In this game, Hart played 48 minutes, shooting 7-of-16 from the field, 4-of-7 from three-point range, scoring 21 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals and 2 blocks, and his plus/minus was +3 - of course, the Knicks won by 3 points, and Hart didn't stop for a second.
In addition to a complete key steal in the final moments, Hart also scored 12 points in the second quarter, and he had 19 points and nine rebounds by halftime, like a superstar.
Unlike Brunson and DiVincenzo, Hart's performance in G1 was very good, and it can even be said that he was an absolute hero, when he was 5-of-12 from the field, 4-of-8 from three-point range, and scored 22 points, 13 rebounds and 2 assists;
Hit a difficult three-pointer in the final minute and grabbed a key front board - you can really understand that Thibodeau, Hart, no, every second of these three brothers on the floor is gold.
It's no surprise that the three Villanova brothers have performed so well in the playoffs, because in the second half of the regular season, they have already performed spectacularly, since Randle's injury:
- Brunson, 33 games, 35 minutes per game, 31.5 points, 3.3 rebounds and 7.1 assists
- DiVincenzo, 35 games, 38 minutes per game, 21.0 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists
- Hart, 36 games, 40 minutes per game, 12.0 points, 10.6 rebounds and 5.8 assists
In this round of the series, the strength of the two teams is very close at present, but the Knicks are undoubtedly the side that fights harder, almost every round is like a mad dog, especially at critical moments, which may be the key factor in determining whether the two teams win or lose.
The next game will be very crucial, if the 76ers lose, they will face a 0-3 deficit situation, no team in history has completed a comeback after falling behind 0-3, when the 76ers duo and Villanova brothers can deliver what performance, we will wait and see.