Printable Page
05/01 21:49 CDT Brunson scores 40, Knicks top Pistons 116-113 in Game 6,
advance to 2nd-round series with Celtics
Brunson scores 40, Knicks top Pistons 116-113 in Game 6, advance to 2nd-round
series with Celtics
By LARRY LAGE
AP Sports Writer
DETROIT (AP) --- Jalen Brunson made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 4.3 seconds
left and finished with 40 points to lead the New York Knicks to a 116-113 win
over the Detroit Pistons on Thursday night and into the second round of the NBA
playoffs.
"He's at his best when his best is needed and he's done it all year," Knicks
coach Tom Thibodeau said. "That's what makes him special."
Detroit didn't get a shot off to potentially tie the game and send it to
overtime because Malik Beasley fumbled a pass with four-tenths of a second left.
The third-seeded Knicks will face second-seeded Boston, shooting to advance to
the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2000.
Mikal Bridges had 25 points and OG Anunoby added 22 for the Knicks, who closed
the game out with clutch shots and stops after losing an 11-point lead in the
fourth quarter and a 15-point advantage in the second quarter.
The sixth-seeded Pistons had an unprecedented turnaround during the regular
season and ended the NBA's longest playoff losing streak in their first
postseason appearance since 2019, but broke another league mark with a 10th
straight setback at home dating to 2008.
"We did so many things well and gave ourselves a chance," Detroit coach J.B.
Bickerstaff said. "They just made one more play than we did."
Detroit's Cade Cunningham had 23 points, eight assists and seven rebounds.
Cunningham was 0 for 8 on 3-pointers and his backcourt mate Tim Hardaway Jr.
was 1 of 6 beyond the arc and scored seven points.
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA
|
