The Knicks' coaching staff has done a wonderful job.
The New York Knicks are a win away from sweeping the Philadelphia 76ers out of the playoffs. The offense has been getting most of the attention, but head coach Mike Brown wanted to talk about the other side of the ball after Friday's 108-94 Game 3 victory.
Specifically, what his team has done in fourth quarters.
"In the last two fourth quarters, they've had a combined - I hope I get this right - 30 points in the last two quarters," Brown said. "That's unheard of and I give a lot of credit to all of our guys on that end of the floor."
The Math Checks Out
Brown nailed it.
The 76ers managed just 12 fourth-quarter points in Game 2 and 18 in Game 3, going a combined 30 points over those final periods while watching leads and momentum disappear.
Philadelphia shot 4-for-19 in the final frame of the Game 2 win and couldn't get anything going late in Game 3 either, even after Joel Embiid returned to the lineup.
While the defense has locked in, Jalen Brunson keeps carrying the scoring load without missing a beat.
He averaged 26.0 points during the regular season and has bumped that up to 27.4 in the playoffs, including a 33-point, nine-assist performance on the road in Game 3 where he answered just about every Philadelphia push with a bucket or a perfectly timed pass.
Bridges Making Maxey Work for Everything
On the other end, Mikal Bridges has taken on the job of chasing Tyrese Maxey around and making his life miserable.
Bridges put up 23 points in Game 3, but Brown went out of his way to praise the defensive effort more than anything else.
Maxey finished with 17 points on a rough shooting night after going 2-for-7 down the stretch in Game 2, and Philadelphia limited him to just eight shot attempts through three quarters in Game 3.
Two Painful Postseasons Make This One Feel Different
The Knicks went 53-29 in the regular season and have rattled off six straight playoff wins heading into Game 4 on Sunday, which is a far cry from how their last two postseasons ended.
In 2024, they held a 3-2 series lead over the Indiana Pacers in the second round and blew it in Game 7 at home under Tom Thibodeau.
Then in 2025, they finally broke through to the Eastern Conference Finals only for the Pacers to beat them again in six.
Those collapses stung, and they all had one thing in common.
The Knicks couldn't finish games when they needed to.
This year, Brown's group has shown something different late in games, and holding Philly to 30 combined fourth-quarter points over two contests is about as clear a sign of growth as any.
If they keep that up, a first Finals trip in 27 years is very much within reach.