Knicks overcome poor shooting, foul trouble to beat 76ers 108-102 in Game 2

As a result, Philadelphia made their first six shots of the game, including three threes, and raced out to a 15-8 lead. The 76ers had just three fastbreak points in all of Game 1. They had more than that by the end of the first quarter in Game 2 and had eight at the half. However, they would also finish with eight fastbreak points.

As they've done throughout this winning streak, the Knicks adjusted defensively. They cut off the 76ers' fastbreak attacks and pestered their ballhandlers with constant pressure. If the 76ers were going to run their offense through the perimeter, then the Knicks were going to force those guards to hold onto the ball despite somebody being all over them. It's a big reason that Maxey, who led the 76ers with 26 points and six assists, also had six turnovers on the day.

The Knicks also clamped down late in the game on Paul George, who was tremendous for the 76ers to start the game. George led both teams with five three-pointers, including two in the first quarter when he scored eight of the 76ers’ first 10 points of the game. At the end of the third quarter, George had 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting and had knocked down five-of-11 from three. By the end of the fourth quarter, George had 19 points on 7-of-18 shooting. In fact, the 76ers as a team did not make a field goal in the final seven-plus minutes of the game.

While the 76ers started hot and finished the game cold, the Knicks were ice cold from beyond the arc the entire game. In the Knicks’ four-game playoff winning streak coming into Wednesday, they had made 57-of-130 (43.8%) from three-point range. At some point, the Knicks’ shots were not going to keep falling at the rate they had been. That time was tonight. They shot 2-of-7 from three in the first quarter and continued to get and miss good looks throughout the game, finishing just 7-of-26 from deep.

With their shots not falling, they needed to find another way to win.

Early on, it seemed like that would be using Towns on the perimeter to attack a much slower Drummond. The Knicks’ big man hit two quick shots and dished out two assists in the first quarter, but then the fouls came. With a little over seven minutes gone in the first quarter, Towns picked up his second foul while challenging a Quentin Grimes drive. With Mitchell Robinson out for the game with an illness, Knicks coach Mike Brown had to turn to Ariel Hukporti again. The German big man quickly picked up three fouls of his own within two minutes of entering the game, and the Knicks had to turn to late-season free agent signing Jeremy Sochan as their center.

The fouls would continue to be far too big a story in this game. In fact, there were so many fouls that Madison Square Garden PA announcer Mike Walczewski seemed to lose his voice in the second half.

At the end of the first quarter, the 76ers had been called for seven fouls, and the Knicks had six. With three minutes left in the second quarter, the 76ers still had seven fouls, and the Knicks had 14. With 2:37 left in the second quarter, Adem Bona was called for a foul for running into Josh Hart from behind, and the Madison Square Garden erupted in a cheer so loud you’d think Brunson had hit a game-winner. By the time the third quarter ended, the 76ers had been called for 19 fouls, and the Knicks had been called for 17. All in all, the number of whistles created a fragmented and stagnant game that too often disrupted the rhythm of the offenses.

That was easier to see with the Knicks.

With their offensive hub, Towns, on the bench for long periods of time, the Knicks' fast-paced offense started to feel a little frenetic. Players cut into the same spots. Passes were hurried. Shots were frequently off-balance. Still, the Knicks keep pushing.

They abandoned using a big man altogether and used Josh Hart at the five. They used that small-ball lineup to continue trying to get out in transition. They were able to string together stops and turn them into quick fastbreak layups. Their shots from beyond the arc weren’t falling, so they kept attacking the basket, cutting hard from the wings and attacking a weak middle of the 76ers' defense. On the day, they had 15 points in transition to the 76ers’ six and 56 points in the paint to the 76ers’ 30.

With Brunson not shooting as efficiently early in the game, and Towns on the bench in foul trouble, the Knicks spread the offense around. They had nine players score in this game, and four players scored at least 18 points. Towns would wind up with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists, continuing his per-minute dominance in the playoffs. Mikael Bridges wound up with 18 points and five rebounds, while OG Anunoby added 24 points, five rebounds, four steals, and two assists.

It was a tremendous team win for a team that has continued to rise to the occasion this postseason. It seems that their next challenge may be trying to find a way to win without Anunoby, who came up hobbled while cutting to the basket with a little over three minutes left in the game. He would collect himself and attempt a dunk on the same possession, but he quickly motioned to the bench, was taken out of the game, and headed immediately to the locker room.

While the Knicks didn't have information about the extent of Anunoby's injury at the end of the game, there are only two days before the teams take the court again on Friday in Philadelphia. If Anunoby isn't out there for the Knicks, it will be a huge obstacle to overcome. The wing came into tonight's game averaging 21 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.6 steals, 1.1 blocks, and 1.1 assists in seven games this postseason while emerging as one of the best two-way forwards in the NBA.

For a team that has proven they can change the way they attack in order to pull out a win, playing without Anunoby may be one of the biggest adjustments the Knicks will need to make.