Tyrese Maxey had one of the nights of his life this Tuesday, with 46 points at Madison Square Garden, and the Philadelphia 76ers won an epic and incredible victory in overtime 106-112 against the New York Knicks to remain alive in the ‘playoff’ (3-2).
With 6 and only 29 seconds left in the last quarter, the Knicks were smiling when a masterful Maxey appeared, who nailed one more triple and then took another amazing triple out of his hat and stepped on the logo in the center of the court to send the game to extra time.
Maxey finished his recital with 46 points (17 of 30 in shots, 7 of 12 in triples), 5 rebounds and 9 assists. He also covered the shortcomings of an erratic Joel Embiid who finished with a triple-double of 19 points (7 of 19), 16 rebounds and 10 assists but lost 9 balls.
The Knicks were looking to make it to the second round but were left without a party – the silence from Madison Square Garden at the end was shocking – and now they will have to travel to Philadelphia to play the sixth game on Thursday.
That terrible outcome of the last quarter ruined a new exhibition by Jalen Brunson, the captain of the Knicks with 40 points (15 of 32), 3 rebounds and 6 assists. OG Anunoby (17 points and 6 rebounds) and Mitchell Robinson (2 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks) shined without a reward in the defense of the Knicks who played without Bogdanovic, who will undergo surgery on his left foot and will not play again this season.
On a night that was expected to be glorious, the Knicks began with a strangely out of tune performance: they missed their first 8 shots, lost 4 balls in the first quarter and missed the 5 three-pointers they attempted. Embiid didn’t have an outstanding start either and he looked stiff and lacking rhythm with only 5 points in that first act. The one who did start at full speed was Maxey, very active with 11 points that gave the Sixers an interesting advantage (17-26).
It is unquestionable that Embiid is far from his best form, but there is also no doubt that as soon as he goes to the bench the Sixers notice it a lot. The center went to rest in just two and a half minutes and the Knicks exploited it with an 11-2 run that tied the game in a flash.
Embiid’s return to the court did not alter the dynamic, since Robinson put a welcome block on him and the set, with Brunson and Miles McBride releasing pyrotechnics in transitions, reached a scandalous 20-4 (37-31 with 5-38 For resting).
Fierce and tireless, the local defense dried up a totally paralyzed Sixers in the middle of a Madison Square Garden standing and cheering every action even though there was a world left to play for.
The partial second quarter was a review: a 32-17 with 13 points from Brunson in that period that left the New Yorkers ahead after the first half (49-43).
Regarding Embiid, there was no major news with 8 points and 9 rebounds but 3 of 10 shooting and 3 turnovers.
A 2-10 start, with Maxey shaking the shaker and serving the Sixers’ drinks, was reminiscent of that first quarter of dominance by Nick Nurse’s team.
The Knicks did not allow themselves to be overwhelmed, but their attack lost precision and the match reached a practically tied final quarter (70-69).
Neither team managed to distance themselves during a very exciting outcome and the duel was already a face to face between Brunson and Maxey.
It seemed that the Knicks, after a robbery by Robinson from Embiid and a dunk on Anunoby’s counterattack, had it in their pocket, but then Maxey emerged to spoil the party in New York and force overtime.
Brunson, who received a slap in the face from Embiid, scored the Knicks’ 9 points in overtime, but Maxey and Embiid himself did the rest in attack and defense to give the Sixers one more life.
