Despite a historic shooting barrage from Jalen Brunson and the New York Knicks, the Philadelphia 76ers remain poised. The fatigued Sixers look to regroup after New York’s record-breaking offensive clinic in Madison Square Garden.
Tyrese Maxey’s postgame line captured the mood after the Philadelphia 76ers' 137-98 Game 1 loss to New York: "It doesn’t matter if we lose by seven or 70. They won one game, and we lost one game.”
This response shows that the team was not figured out or broken but fatigued and feeling the impact of having recently finished a seven-game series.
As the game went on, it was clear that the team did not have its legs under it. That showed early: the New York Knicks dominated in the second quarter and led 74-51 going into the break. Things didn't get better from there, and by the time the fourth quarter came, Philadelphia had waved the white flag and subbed out their starters.
The Knicks also had one of their best shooting nights of the season. New York shot 63.1% from the field and 51.4% from three, both franchise records in a playoff setting. They finished the game with an effective field goal percentage of 74.4%, the third-highest mark in a single game in NBA playoff history. Brunson led the charge with a hyper-efficient 35 points, including 27 in the first half alone. Karl Anthony Towns had 17 points in just 20 minutes, and OG Anunoby had 18 points and only missed one shot.
Philadelphia, by contrast, could not keep up. Paul George led the team with 17 points, while Joel Embiid had 14 and Tyrese Maxey finished with 13 as New York smothered any good look that Philadelphia might have had, then made them pay on the other end with lights-out shooting. That does not mean the series is automatically over; it is only one game, and the Sixers have already shown they can respond to adversity.
But Game 1 was a reminder that just because Boston was beaten, that doesn't mean Philadelphia is out of the woods yet; they will have to work hard to overcome the Knicks and their star duo of Towns and Brunson.
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Wes Dixon is a contributing writer to 76ersRoundtable. He can be reached at dixonwesley286@gmail.com.