NEW YORK, NY — The New York Knicks were dead in the water Wednesday night.
Down by 29 points and 27 at halftime while facing a San Antonio Spurs team that had just set an NBA Finals record with 14 three-pointers in the first half and built the largest halftime lead by a road team in Finals history.
But somehow, inside a roaring Madison Square Garden, the Knicks found a way, producing a miracle on 34th Street in June that will be remembered for generations to come.
It was a comeback for the ages Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden for the Knicks as New York overcame a 29-point deficit to beat the Spurs in Game 4 of the NBA Finals and go up 3-1 in the best of seven series – Image Credit: NBA
Behind 36 points from Jalen Brunson, 33 from OG Anunoby, and a defensive effort that completely flipped the game in the second half, the Knicks stunned the Spurs 107-106 in Game 4 of the NBA Finals, completing the largest comeback in NBA Finals history and moving within one win of their first NBA championship since 1973.
The defining moment appeared with just two seconds remaining in regulation and Brunson launching a contested three-pointer from the top of the key. Anunoby crashed the glass to slip free of his defender and softly tipped the miss back through the rim for the go-ahead basket at the 1.2 second mark.
And at that moment—1.2 seconds to go—Madison Square Garden erupted.
“I was top of the key and got a decent look,” said Brunson afterward. “Obviously, it was a little far. Had two guys contesting, so was able to get some pressure off the rim. Got a good bounce off the rim and OG being OG just made a play.”
Anunoby’s tip-in capped one of the greatest playoff performances of his career. The 28-year-old forward finished with 33 points, knocking down seven three-pointers and added a game-saving chase-down block on De’Aaron Fox in the closing seconds.
“It feels cool,” Anunoby said. “Everyone’s pretty excited. I’m excited, too. We’re all excited. We’re enjoying it right now. But we’re just focused on the next game now.”
The night began as a nightmare for New York with Karl-Anthony Towns picking up two fouls in the opening 65 seconds following a successful Spurs challenge. San Antonio immediately seized control from there on Victor Wembanyama’s dominance and the team catching fire—shooting 60 percent from the field with 14 three-pointers in the first half.
On the home end, the Knicks, battling foul trouble, continued to struggle with clean possessions, and strong defensive rotations, which resulted in San Antonio heading to the locker room up 76-49 at the half.
The Knicks kept their message simple in the locker room as Brunson explained in the postgame: “There really wasn’t that much to be said. We need to chip away. We need to hit singles, get on base and make plays from there.”
The Knicks did just that, finally finding life in the third quarter as the comeback began.
A flagrant foul assessed to Wembanyama on Towns ignited the crowd. Brunson and Anunoby immediately responded with buckets, and New York slowly began chipping away at the deficit.
The Knicks outscored San Antonio 26-14 in the third quarter and entered the fourth trailing 90-75.
“We’re a resilient group,” Anunoby said. “We’ve been through a lot. We’ve come back plenty of times when we’re behind. Just staying with it, weathering the storm, not being too down or angry or frustrated.”
Brunson took over in the fourth as he has done in every game so far in the Finals. One key possession was a deep three over Wembanyama to cut the deficit down to one. Moments later, he delivered a driving basket that gave New York its first lead of the night with just over a minute remaining.
Yet even then, the drama wasn’t finished.
After Stephon Castle converted two free throws to put San Antonio back ahead, Brunson’s potential game-winner missed long. But Anunoby, on a full head of steam, was waiting.
“I just went and crashed,” Anunoby said. “Tried to get a tip-dunk or something. The ball went over my head, so I couldn’t really dunk it. So I tried to tip it in softly and it went in.”
The Knicks then got one final stop as Towns made contact on a Spurs inbound pass forcing a difficult shot from Castle to seal a Game 4 victory that will forever live in New York sports and NBA history.
The Dominican American big man out of Piscataway, New Jersey called the moment “the right hand from God” when asked about Anunoby’s game-winning putback.
“He gave us a chance to win, and that’s all you could ask for from the best two-way player in the NBA.”
Another Knick providing New York with winning plays in the historic second half was Puerto Rican guard José Alvarado, contributing eight points, three assists and two boards.
“Two kids from here, right. I’m not going to sugarcoat this: I was about to cry, not because—obviously there is one more, but I’m at Madison Square Garden, end of the fourth quarter, playing with these guys, and we’re playing for something special,” the Brooklyn native said alongside KAT in the postgame press conference. “I was just excited. It’s really something I couldn’t put into words.”
Meanwhile for San Antonio, the collapse was devastating—up 29 on the road with a chance to even up the best of seven series at two apiece.
“We clearly weren’t the most hungry (team) in the second half,” Wembanyama said, finishing with 24 points and 13 rebounds. “But we’ve proven that we can surpass these difficulties. Even though we haven’t been there before, I’m convinced we’re built that way and we’re going to use the better of this. It’s going to tighten us up.”
The Spurs scored 76 points in the first half but only 30 after the break as New York’s defense completely changed the game.
Fans remained inside Madison Square Garden after the final buzzer chanting “OG! OG! OG!” while players and celebrities from all over embraced at center court.
For a franchise chasing history, this was more than a comeback. It was a true NYC statement.
The Knicks are now one win away from a championship, up 3-1, with Game 5 scheduled for Saturday night in San Antonio.
But as Brunson reminded everyone afterward: “There’s nothing to celebrate. It’s not over yet, not even close.”
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