There was no runaway for the New York Knicks Wednesday night against the Philadelphia 76ers.
But the end result was the same. The Knicks pulled away late for a 108-102 win in a tightly contested Game 2 against a 76ers team playing without Joel Embiid. The Knicks now have a 2-0 series lead and a five-game playoff win streak.
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This time, they won while facing a fight. New York won its previous four games by 19-plus points each and a playoff-record combined 135 points. Wednesday’s contest was tight throughout, and the 76ers went into the fourth quarter holding a 90-89 lead.
But New York’s balanced effort ultimately prevailed. The Knicks took a 101-99 lead on a Jalen Brunson jumper with 5:06 remaining. The lead change was the 25th of the night, the most in a playoff game since 2015.
There wouldn’t be a 26th. New York pulled away down the stretch and the 76ers went cold at the worst possible time.
For most of the game, the 76ers were noticeably freer without an ailing Embiid on the floor. Embiid was clearly battling through lower-body injuries in Game 1 that limited his mobility in a Knicks rout.
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Without Embiid Wednesday night, the 76ers ran up and down the floor as Tyrese Maxey took the lead on offense. But the Knicks were ready to run too and spread the ball around as four players scored 16 points or more in the win.
The Knicks relied on a balanced effort to win a back-and-forth Game 2 over the 76ers.
(Dustin Satloff via Getty Images)
Mistakes ultimately doomed Philadelphia’s offense down the stretch as the 76ers finished the game with 18 turnovers.
Brunson, who led New York’s 137-point Game 1 onslaught with 35, paced the Knicks again, this time with 26 points and 6 assists. He wasn’t nearly as efficient from the field on a 9-of-21 shooting night. But he had plenty of help on offense.
Mikal Bridges added 18 points and five rebounds on a 9-of-13 shooting night. OG Anunoby posted 24 points, 5 rebounds and 4 steals.
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Karl-Anthony Towns overcome early foul trouble that limited him to eight first-half minutes due his his third personal foul in the first minute of the second quarter. He needed just 27 minutes to post 20 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists on eight field-goal attempts. Towns continues to find ways in this postseason to work efficiently in Mike Brown’s offense while looking to pass the ball and wait for good shots.
The Knicks struggled from 3 (7 of 26), but shot well overall (51% from the field) and optimized their trips to the free throw line on a 21-of-25 (84%) effort.
Maxey led Philadelphia with 26 points and 6 assists. But he struggled from the field (9 of 23) and from 3 (1 of 6) and accounted for six of Philadelphia’s 18 turnovers.
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Paul George cooled off from a hot first quarter in which he posted 11 points on 4-of-4 shooting including three 3s. He finished with 19 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assist while shooting 7 of 18 from the field and 5 of 13 from 3.
Andre Drummond started in place of Embiid, but played on 15 minutes as the 76ers shifted to a small-ball lineup for much of the game.
The series will now move to Philadelphia, where the 76ers will be desperate for a win to avoid digging a 3-0 series hole. There will be no extended break for the change of venue and no extra days for Embiid to recover for a potential return.
Game 3 is scheduled for Friday night (7 p.m. ET, Prime).
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