The New York Knicks turned Madison Square Garden into a madhouse Wednesday night, ripping off the largest comeback in NBA Finals history and stealing a 107-106 win from the San Antonio Spurs after trailing by 29. OG Anunoby sealed it with a tip-in of Jalen Brunson’s missed 3-pointer with 1.2 seconds left. Brunson poured in 36 points, Anunoby added 33, and the Knicks suddenly own a 3-1 series lead.
How It Happened
For most of the night, this looked like a horror show for the home crowd. San Antonio blitzed New York early, building a 27-point halftime lead and stretching it to 81-52 in the third quarter. The Knicks had to dominate the second half just to make it respectable, never mind to actually win.
According to The Associated Press, New York outscored San Antonio 58-30 after intermission and completed the shocker when Anunoby slipped in for the decisive putback of Brunson’s long 3 with 1.2 seconds to play.
Spurs' Shooting Swing
San Antonio came out flamethrowing, storming out of the gate, making 11 of its first 16 threes, then cooled off in dramatic fashion. After halftime, the Spurs went just 3 of 17 from deep as the Knicks tightened the screws defensively and the building got loud. The Dallas Morning News recapped the wild momentum swing that flipped both the game and the feel of the series.
Victor Wembanyama still finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds, solid numbers by any standard, but his stat line could not stop the fourth-quarter unraveling, per Sports Illustrated.
Last-Second Finish
On the final play, Brunson pulled up from way beyond the arc and watched his potential game winner spin out. Anunoby crashed in, wrestled the loose ball, and muscled it back through the net with 1.2 seconds remaining. The Garden detonation that followed was instant, and, according to multiple press accounts, it did not take long for fans to break into Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin'" as the magnitude of the comeback settled in.
That last possession nudged New York past the previous NBA Finals comeback record of 24 points and straight into the history books, according to The Associated Press.
What’s Next
The Knicks now head to San Antonio with a 3-1 cushion and a chance to grab a stranglehold on the series. Game 5 is scheduled for Saturday night in San Antonio on the NBA’s official Finals slate. A Spurs win would drag this thing back to New York and crank up the pressure again, while a Knicks victory would put them one step from a championship.
Beyond the viral finish, the night underlined what has been said about this team all postseason: Brunson’s late-game poise and Anunoby’s two-way scoring punch make New York a nightmare matchup when the supporting cast shows up. As Sports Illustrated noted, San Antonio left itself exposed by leaning heavily on its early barrage from the perimeter and had no answers once the shots stopped falling and the Garden crowd turned up the volume.
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