NEW YORK Knicks leaned on Jalen Brunson’s free throws in the endgame to defeat Detroit Pistons, 118-116, in Game 3 of the NBA Eastern Conference first round series on Thursday night (Friday in the Philippines) at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan.
After the Pistons cut the deficit to 113-116 on a triple by Tim Hardaway Jr. with five seconds left, the Knicks made it a two-possession game at 117-113 on a split free throw by Brunson.
The Pistons threatened anew at 116-117 with a second left after an outside conversion by Tobias Harris, but Brunson made his first and missed his second free throw to seal the Knicks’ win.
Brunson finished with 30 points to go with nine assists and seven rebounds as the Knicks regained the lead in the best-of-seven first round series at 2-1 following the road win.
Karl-Anthony Towns led the way for New York with 31 points, including four three-point conversions, while OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges contributed 22 and 20 points, respectively.
Cade Cunningham and Hardaway each scored 24 points to lead the Pistons, while Dennis Schröder, Jalen Duren, and Malik Beasley contributed 18, 16, and 14 points, respectively.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma City Thunder battled back from 29 points down to defeat Memphis Grizzlies, 114-108, and took a commanding 3-0 lead in their best-of-seven Western Conference first round series.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 31 points and eight assists, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren added 26 and 24 points, respectively, while Alex Caruso and Isaiah Joe tallied 10 apiece.
Scottie Pippen Jr. top-scored for the Grizzlies with 28 points, Jaren Jackson Jr. added 22 markers, while Ja Morant contributed 15 markers before exiting in the first half with a back injury.
Los Angeles Clippers surged to a 2-1 series edge after a lopsided 117-83 Game 3 win over Denver Nuggets. Kawhi Leonard had a double-double of 21 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Clippers./PN
BOX SCORE:
NEW YORK 118 — Towns 31, Brunson 30, Anunoby 22, Bridges 20, Hart 6, Payne 4, McBride 3, Robinson 2, Shamet 0.
DETROIT 116 — Cunningham 24, Hardaway 24, Schröder 18, Duren 16, Beasley 12, Thompson 7, Holland 6, Harris 5, Reed 4.
Quarterscores: 33-27; 66-53; 93-83; 118-116.
