Despite having two chances to finish ahead of New York for good, San Antonio was unable to complete its ferocious fourth quarter comeback and lost game 2 of the Finals. In the waning seconds, Victor Wembanyama committed an unforced turnover trying to feed Stephon Castle in transition, and then missed a buzzer-beating 17-footer. New York extended its playoff win streak to 13 on the power of audaciously accurate shooting in many of the moments that mattered. With the two home losses, San Antonio dug
itself a 0-2 hole that will require wins in four of the next handful of games – with three of them at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks erased yet another first half Spurs lead behind the shooting exploits of Karl Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges during some really wretched offensive futility by San Antonio in the second quarter.
San Antonio could not find their well-defended superstar Wembanyama (29 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 blocks) over countless first half possessions, but after a heated huddle conversation in the third quarter, Wembanyama finally took the game into his hands in that late comeback attempt. De’Aaron Fox (20 points and 5 assists) came on late, while Castle (14 points and 4 assists) had his most uneven performance in some time. Devin Vassell (14 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists) contributed mightily, while Dylan Harper (15 points and 6 rebounds) made the only impact of the reservers.
New York took control of the game in the second period with timely shooting from their vetera players. Towns (21 points and 13 rebounds) nearly got the better of his Spurs counterpart again, while Bridges (20 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists) and Landry Shamet (13 points) had answers for over 3+ quarters. Jalen Brunson (20 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists) was carried by his teammates on a somewhat muted evening by his standards.
An intense first quarter saw the Knicks’ Brunson and Anunoby generate all of their offensive output over the first half of it. On the way to putting up 20 points over that same period of time, San Antonio only put up one questionable outside shot (Wembanyama had an open lane to drive and settled for a missed triple). Towns’ three broke the Brunson/Anunoby scoring streak and brought New York within four. The Hack-a-Mitchell-Robinson strategy commenced in the waning minutes of the frame generated mixed results as the center hit 3-for-6. Fox found better lanes late in the frame and put up a rapid seven points. Harper, known for his offense, helped forced two unforeced turnovers on the perimeter. An longer than usual first quarter ended with San Antonio ahead 34-25.
At the start of the second period, Towns, as Brunson rested for a protracted amount of time, pieced together his own 9-0 run to slice the New York deficit to five. Wembanyama, meanwhile, sat at four field goal attempts 1 1/2 periods in. New York received clutch shot after shot from Bridges, while San Antonio could not find a consistent contributor after Castle went to the bench with three fouls. A alarmingly tentative Wembanyama committed a pair of turnovers late in the half, and New York capitalized to surge ahead 56-52.
New York’s confidence in its outside shooting continued to grow coming out of the half. Castle, playing with three fouls, stabilized the Spurs’ offense in some tenuous moments in the meaty part of the third period. San Antonio benefitted from Hart and Towns picking up their fourth fouls, too. Johnson made his first meaningful impact this series with his presence on the boards. While San Antonio cut into the considerable deficit and prevented a New York runaway, they still left it down nine.
Observations
- I keep on reading that, for many of the Spurs’ rotation players, this is the worst that they ever will be. I wish there was an accelerant somehow for them.
- That agile and girthy stretch-4 will come in handy next playoff run.
- Devin’s Deeds: If he continues his stalwart two-way presence, he could very well end up awarded on the top defensive teams next season.
- Sequence of the Game #1: Stuck deep in the paint halfway through the first period, Johnson ‘found’ Wembanyama cutting through the lane for a dunk.
- Sequence of the Game #2: Late in the first quarter, Harper caught the ball, eluded a Landry Shamet reach-in by switching hands, and powered home a dunk over Towns.
Game Rundown
A well-executed first possession ping-ponged from Wembanyama (top) to Castle (bottom) to Vassell for a straightaway three. Though Brunson hit his first attempt, Champagnie drew a quick foul on him at the other end. Champagnie hit two triples – the first a traditional one, and the second resembled the off-the-glass three Deuce McBride hit the other night. On a transition attempt, Brunson thought he’d drawn the foul on Vassell, but the guard swatted away the shot cleanly. Threes from Anunoby and Brunson kept it a one-possession game. Castle drew Hart’s second foul in transition, but missed both freebies. Towns committed a boneheaded foul to put the Spurs into the foul bonus with 5:45 left. Towns had a personal 5-0 run while Wembanyama sat, and San Antonio started settling for jumpers. Fox’s first basket came 8 1/2 minutes in, and his catch-and-shoot three moments later put the Spurs up eight. San Antonio exited the quarter up nine.
Castle’s corner three matched Towns’ three to start of the second. Tony Brothers’ crew missed an obvious foul by Shamet on Castle, and Towns received a friendlier whistle at the other end. Fox – very likely double-dribbling during a later possession – willed home an and-1. Castle was maddeningly whistled for his second foul (third overall) closing out on a three-point attempt. A Bridges three brought the Knicks within three. After Harper missed a transition lay-up, Bridges hit from three again. Hart was called for his third foul when he tripped Vassell on a loose-ball situation. Bridges’ third three of the quarter brought the Knicks within one. Right after a Shamet lay-up gave New York their first lead, Vassell knocked down a 4-point play. The Spurs’ offense sputtered over the remaining minutes, and after two Wembanyama turnovers, Bridges’ fourth three put the Knicks up four at the half.
New York continued to shred the Spurs defense to start the third period with Anunoby and Brunson knocking down deflating threes. Over the Knicks’ opening 8-2 salvo, San Antonio’s offense consisted of a lone Wembanyama fadeaway jumper. Fox drew Hart’s fourth foul, and his and-1 was answered by yet another Bridges three. Towns picked up his 3rd and 4th fouls in succession. Johnson’s offensive rebound and putback and Castle’s three brought the Spurs within five. San Antonio found it’s first consistent offensive execution since the first quarter, but the Knicks made just enough plays to stay comfortably ahead. McBride and Bridges’ shotmaking created separation near the end of the period, and the Spurs went to the fourth down 75-84.
