The Cardiac Knicks survived another one.
In the latest playoff installment of “Knicks finding any way to win,” the home team rode their Villanova trio again in Monday’s 121-117 Game 1 conference semis thriller, recovering from a late deficit with a few clutch plays — and a favorable controversial call — in the final minute.
Jalen Brunson rose to the top of the elite by scoring 43 points, becoming the first player since Michael Jordan to record four consecutive games of at least 40 in the playoffs.
It’s generational stuff from the point guard.
“Michael Jordan?” Donte DiVincenzo repeated for dramatic effect at the postgame presser.
Yet Brunson probably wasn’t the biggest hero of Monday’s Game 1 win. DiVincenzo, his college roommate, made the biggest plays on both sides of the ball, including a clutch trey with 40 seconds left to give the Knicks the lead for good. He took a pass from Brunson and buried the shot in rhythm.
“I felt it,” DiVincenzo said. “I believe every shot that I shoot is going in.”
Twenty-seven seconds later, DiVincenzo drew an offensive foul by running into an illegal screen — albeit controversial — by Myles Turner when the Pacers had a chance to tie. DiVincenzo was chasing around Tyrese Haliburton and Turner turned a tad too much on the pick.
Indiana’s challenge confirmed the call after a review, which didn’t make Turner feel much better about the situation.
“I think it’s best when the players determine the outcome of the game,” the Pacers’ center said.
DiVincenzo finished with 25 points, all while serving as the main defender on Haliburton and holding the Pacers’ All-Star to a measly six points. Brunson showed the type of scoring brilliance that’s come to be expected from the point guard, shooting 14 for 26 with six assists and six boards in 43 minutes.
Josh Hart was everywhere with 24 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists. He again played all 48 minutes.
“The dude’s crazy,” Brunson said. “It’s how he’s wired.”
Still, the Knicks were in danger of losing Game 1 for much of the evening. They had to climb out of a nine-point deficit in the fourth quarter and trailed by two with 90 seconds left.
That’s when Brunson followed with a stepback in the paint for the tie. Then the Pacers missed a trey, and DiVincenzo knocked down his latest big 3-pointer.
Following a Brunson turnover with 18 seconds left, the Pacers had a chance to tie but Turner was whistled for that controversial illegal screen.
So the Knicks escaped again. The Houdinis of Midtown.
As the Sixers series demonstrated, they’re comfortable when they’re supposed to be uneasy and confident when the spotlight is brightest.
Per normal these days, nobody could stop Brunson. The point guard became the first player in NBA history with 40-plus points and five or more assists in five straight playoff games. The only players with 30-plus points and five-plus assists in five straight playoff games? Jordan, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Oscar Robertson.
Even they couldn’t duplicate Brunson’s run.
“He’s the engine,” Hart said. “We’re going to go as far as he goes.”
It’s also worth noting that the winner of Game 1 captured the seven previous Knicks-Pacers series.
“Go out there and just figure out how to win,” Brunson said. “Learn from winning, honestly. You can’t just play and sit back. Gotta learn to be better. We knew we had to play better tonight. They had our number for most of the night. We just made a couple of plays down the stretch. So we just know that we need to be better because they’re gonna be better. That has to be our mentality going forward.”
