NBA LEGEND CELEBRATES WITH MVP JALEN BRUNSON

 

MVP JALEN BRUNSON MAKES NBA HISTORY | NBA FINALS 2026

Jalen Brunson became the first player in NBA history to win the NBA Cup, the Conference Finals MVP, and the NBA Finals MVP in the same season.

🔸NBA Finals MVP

🔸Conference Finals MVP

🔸NBA Cup MVP 

NBA REVIEWING MISSED FOUL ON VICTOR WEMBANYAMA SHOVE OF JALEN BRUNSON

 

Jun 8, 2026; New York, New York, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) passes the ball to San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) against New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) and center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) during game three of the 2026 NBA Finals in the third quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

NEW YORK -- Referees missed a foul call on Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama when he shoved Knicks guard Jalen Brunson in the first quarter of Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Monday.

Without a whistle on Wembanyama, the play continued with San Antonio on offense. A replay review appeared to show Brunson, who was on defense and working through a screen on the play, making initial contact with his left hand and grabbing a fistful of Wembanyama's jersey, prompting the retaliatory shove. With his own left hand, Wembanyama aggressively shoved Brunson in the upper back and neck area, sending him toward the floor.

But it remains unclear if either player will be cited for any offense in the review of the matter on the off day before Game 4 at Madison Square Garden.

NBA head of officiating Monty McCutchen said Tuesday the league is reviewing the play, and holds the ability to retroactively assess a flagrant-1 foul. The NBA rulebook deems "unnecessary contact" a flagrant-1 foul, because it goes beyond the actions warranting a common foul.

If the NBA issues a flagrant-1 for the play, Wembanyama would not be subject to a suspension. But the Spurs' big man would be skating into Game 4 on thin ice.

Wembanyama has already obtained two penalty points for a flagrant-2 foul in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals against Naz Reid of the Timberwolves.

All players can accumulate a total of three penalty points in the playoffs. If Wembanyama's shove is upgraded to a flagrant foul, he would have three penalty points. His next flagrant in the Finals would prompt an automatic suspension.

Julian Champagnie had the ball on the left wing facing San Antonio's basket with Landry Shamet defending when the action happened near the foul line and away from the play.

Brunson was also called for a flagrant foul closing out on a Champagnie 3-pointer. Officials said he did not provide ample landing space for the Spurs' deep threat. Brunson had little to say about the non-call postgame.

"Whatever you saw is what you saw," Brunson said.

A flagrant-2, described as justified in the rulebook when "unnecessary and excessive or reckless contact" is "committed by a player against an opponent," would prompt an automatic ejection.

--Field Level Media

STEPHEN A. SMITH SAYS JALEN BRUNSON 'SHOULD.BE ARRESTED' AFTER GAME 1

Stephen A. Smith reacted strongly to Jalen Brunson's dominant finish in the New York Knicks comeback win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals. After Brunson scored 38 points and led New York back from a 22-point deficit, Smith said the Knicks star "should be arrested" for the way he attacked James Harden late in the game

Credit Getty Images/Scanpix

ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith had a strong reaction to Jalen Brunson performance after the New York Knicks pulled off a stunning comeback win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Knicks erased a 22-point deficit and defeated Cleveland 115-104 in overtime at Madison Square Garden after finishing regulation on a huge 18-1 run.

Following the game, Stephen A. Smith praised Brunson for taking over in crunch time and attacking Cleveland star James Harden possession after possession.

"Jalen Brunson goes ballistic and literally should be arrested for the assault that he put on James Harden," he said on ESPN's SportsCenter. "Just abused him at every single turn, annihilated him, kept going by him, scored like five or six straight baskets."

Brunson once again delivered in a big playoff moment for New York. The All-Star guard finished with 38 points, five rebounds, six assists and three steals while playing 46 minutes.

The Knicks struggled for most of the night and trailed by 22 points with under eight minutes left in regulation. However, Brunson sparked the comeback with aggressive drives, tough mid-range shots and clutch baskets late in the fourth quarter.

After forcing overtime, New York stayed in control and outscored Cleveland 14-3 in the extra period to take a 1-0 series lead.

Brunson shot 15-of-29 from the field and looked unstoppable down the stretch as the Knicks completed one of the biggest comebacks in recent NBA playoff history.

Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals will take place on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.

- BasketballNews

JALEN BRUNSON DROPS 38 AS KNICKS DRAW FIRST BLOOD

 

PHILADELPHIA 76ERS VS. NEW YORK KNICKS | GAME 1 RESULTS | JALEN BRUNSON ON 🔥

 

HOW VILLANOVA FEELS ABOUT HAVING THE NEW POPE AS AN ALUM

AP

Father Peter Donohue, the president of Villanova University, was having lunch with a few of the school’s alums in a Chicago restaurant on Thursday when word got out that white smoke was billowing from the Sistine Chapel, signaling the election of a new Pope. Donohue asked the restaurant staff to turn up the TV sound.

He knew his fellow Villanova alum, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost—a Chicago native who graduated from the Philadelphia-area school in 1977, two years after Donohue—took part in the Papal conclave. But Donohue, like most other Catholics around the world, was not expecting to see Cardinal Prevost step onto the Vatican balcony, and introduce himself to the world as Pope Francis’ successor. After all, other church officials had more experience than Prevost, who had only been a Cardinal since 2023. And no American had even been elected Pope before.

So when Prevost was in fact announced as the next pope, Donohue was just as stunned as anyone. “I practically fell off the chair,” he tells TIME. “It was such a long shot.”

And in the minutes and hours that followed, he fielded a parade of well-wishes, as Donohue was suddenly the first person in history to lead an American university that counts a Pope among its alumni pool.

“You would think I became the Pope,” says Donohue, “I was getting so many congratulations.”

St. Thomas of Villanova Church at Villanova University in Pennsylvania on Thursday.Credit...Rachel Wisniewski for The New York Times

Villanova, a mid-size Catholic institution run by the same Order of St. Augustine that produced the newly-installed Pope Leo XIV, is enjoying one heck of a moment. A strong academic institution with a loyal alumni base, Villanova was probably best-known in the popular imagination—before the ascension of one of its former math majors to the papacy—for its success in college basketball. The Wildcats, under Hall of Fame coach Jay Wright, won a pair of recent championships, in 2016 and 2018.

“We already had God: we had Jay Wright,” says Paul DiSenso, a 2000 Villanova alum who lives in the New York City area. “Now we have the Pope too. That’s pretty good.”

What’s more, three of those championship players—Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges—are currently in the starting lineup for the New York Knicks, who just last night completed a second stunning comeback victory against the defending NBA champions, the Boston Celtics, on the road in their second-round playoff series. The Knicks lead the series 2-0, and with two home games at Madison Square Garden coming up on Saturday and Monday, New York’s “Villanova Knicks” have a strong chance to lead the franchise to the conference finals for the first time in a quarter century.

Forgive Knicks fans for believing that the surprise selection of Pope Leo XIV is some sign of divine intervention: even Father Donohue has been enjoying some of the Knicks papal memes running rampant around the internet. “Oh, I’ve already seen that one!” he says when I mention that the image floating around of the Pope eating cake with the three Villanova Knicks and Donte DiVincenzo, the former Villanova and Knicks player who was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves before this season.

And forgive Rosanne Breen for beaming with Villanova love. On a 1-10 scale, she says, “my Villanova pride has always been a 10. And today it’s like 210.” Because today, on her 62nd birthday, Breen, who graduated from the school in 1985—the year the Wildcats upset Georgetown in an epic national championship basketball game to win its first title—found out a fellow math major was elected pope. Breen’s nephew, an engineering alum, texted her: Aunt Rosanne, can you believe the Pope walked the halls of Mendel Hall and had the same teachers you had?

Breen won the school’s math medal as the top student in 1985: Breen’s kids are all wondering if the Pope also nabbed that honor too. If he didn’t, they surely wouldn’t mind mom one-upping the Pope on something. 

“If he did,” says Donohue, “he probably wouldn't have told anybody. That’s the way he is. A very humble guy.”

In September of 2022, Breen lost her family’s Long Island home—and too many valuable possessions, including the math medal—in a fire. She told a couple in the neighborhood about losing her cherished award. Unbeknownst to Breen, her friends— who happen to be Jewish and had no connection to Villanova—called the school to inform officials about what happened to Breen. About a year ago, Breen discovered a surprise package in the mail. Villanova remade her math medal. It proudly stands in her rebuilt home.

She was known as Rosanne Puntolillo back then: for the last 35 years, Rosanne has been married to Mike Breen, the NBA lead play-by-announcer for ESPN and—here’s that divine sign—the New York Knicks. “I hope he’s a basketball fan,” says Rosanne Breen of the Pope.

“I'm a little bit speechless,” she says. “Of the million different things somebody could be, a Villanova math major is very much a grain of sand.”

Ryan Mahoney, a 2011 Villanova graduate who worked as an intern at the Vatican, doing web design and planning virtual tours his junior year, hopes Pope Leo XIV's election allows the church to spread the school’s core values—veritas (truth), unitas (unity), and caritas (love), emblazoned on Breen’s medal and all over campus. “It’s exciting for me as an alum, but as a Catholic as well,” Mahoney says. “An American Pope. who has these Augustinian values will be really nice for the global Catholic church.”

Villanova is in uncharted waters: no data exists to forecast whether a papal election increases inbound interest—in the form of more applications and donations, for example—in an American institution of higher education. If sports success is any indicator, however, Villanova could see a Papal boon. Donohue says applications increased after the hoops titles, like they have for many schools. “Certainly the name is out there,” he says. “When we won the basketball championships, people suddenly said, ‘let me look at Villanova. Let me investigate what this place is like.’ And so maybe people look at us and say, ‘Oh, the Pope is from Villanova. Maybe I should look at that.’”

Though Donohue knew Pope Leo XIV during their undergrad days, he won’t speak out of school. “I can't tell stories about him now,” he says with a hearty guffaw. “People would think that's terrible.” Prevost was bright, analytical and friendly, but it’s not like Donohue thought, back in the mid-1970s, he was going to be Pope one day. “Nobody says that about anybody.”

Right before speaking with TIME on Thursday, Donohue sent Pope Leo XIV an email, at his personal address. “It started out, ‘Bob,’” Donohue says. “Then I said, ‘I guess I should say Your Holiness.’” He told Pope Leo that Villanova, and the Pope’s Augustinian brothers in the United States, were praying for him, and wished him the best. “I’m going to try to see if I can get him as the commencement speaker,” says Donohue. Not for this spring though. Villanova already booked someone. Plus, Prevost needs to settle in at the Vatican.

“We’ll give him a year.”  

- Sean Gregory

BRUNSON BRILLIANCE AS KNICKS CLINCH SERIES, CLIPPERS SINK NUGGETS

Knicks advance to an Eastern Conference semi-final series against the Boston Celtics

Jalen Brunson #11 of the New York Knicks celebrates after making a three-point basket late during the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons in Game Six of the Eastern Conference First Round NBA Playoffs at Little Caesars Arena on May 01, 2025 in Detroit, Michigan

Los Angeles, United States: Jalen Brunson scored 40 points as the New York Knicks clinched a series victory over the Detroit Pistons while the Los Angeles Clippers downed the Denver Nuggets to set up a titanic NBA playoff decider on Thursday. 

Brunson drained a game-winning three-pointer with four seconds remaining to give the Knicks a thrilling 116-113 win over the Pistons and seal a 4-2 series triumph.

In the Western Conference, the Clippers beat the Nuggets 111-105 at the Intuit Dome to level their series 3-3 and force a decisive game seven in Denver on Saturday.

James Harden led the way for the Clippers with 28 points while Kawhi Leonard finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds and five assists as Los Angeles bounced back from Tuesday's 131-115 game-five drubbing in Denver. 

In Detroit, the Pistons had also looked poised to level their best-of-seven series with the Knicks after fighting back from 11 points down to lead 112-105 with just under three minutes remaining.

But an extraordinary late rally spearheaded by Brunson saw the Knicks claw their way back into the contest to tie at 113-113 with 36 seconds left on the clock.

Detroit star Cade Cunningham missed a layup to restore the Pistons lead, and that set the stage for an ice-cold three-pointer from Brunson to give the Knicks what turned out to be the winning lead.

"I stay poised and I rely on the trust and the composure that my team-mates give me," Brunson said. "None of this happens without them."

The third-seeded Knicks advance to an Eastern Conference semi-final series against the Boston Celtics, the reigning NBA champions, with game one set for Monday.

Brunson finished with 40 points, four rebounds and seven assists, with Mikal Bridges scoring 25 points and OG Anunoby adding 22.

"Jalen's shot, what can you say?" Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said of Brunson's game-winning three. "He's at his best when his best is needed, and he's done it all year. That's what makes him special."

Cunningham led Detroit's scorers with 23 points, backed by 21 from Jalen Duren and 20 from Malik Beasley.

'Win or go home'

A see-saw first half saw the Knicks romp into a 14-point lead after the opening quarter, outscoring the Pistons 37-23 thanks to 15 points in the opening frame from Brunson.

But Detroit came roaring back in the second quarter, with the hot hand of Beasley draining five-of-eight three-point attempts to haul the Pistons back into contention and into a slender lead at half-time.

The Knicks came out for the second half with renewed focus, the defense locking in to halt the flow of Detroit points while at the other end Brunson and Bridges combined for 21 points to build a double-digit lead.

The momentum shifted once more in the fourth quarter as Detroit fought back against a Knicks team who suddenly looked out of ideas as the Pistons surged into the lead, before Brunson rescued New York at the end.

In Los Angeles, a fired-up Clippers held off a late charge from Denver to secure their series-leveling win.

A nip-and-tuck contest hinged on a huge third quarter by the Clippers, who outscored Denver 32-22 to open up a double-digit lead which stretched to 15 points with just under six minutes remaining.

Denver rallied to cut the gap to just five points with less than a minute remaining, but the Clippers held firm to set up Saturday's decider.

"It was win or go home -- and we didn't want to go home," Clippers star Harden said.

"We've got one more game in a couple of days. We've got to be better. Still a lot of mental mistakes, still a lot of execution that we can get better at. But we've got to go out there and take it."

Denver interim head coach David Adelman pinpointed the third quarter as the moment the game swung away from his team. 

"We got sped up, we didn't handle it -- we played defense but we never could come up with the 50-50 ball. That quarter absolutely killed us," Adelman said. 

"We played a really good fourth quarter, but we've got to be better throughout the whole game."

Nikola Jokic led Denver with 25 points while Jamal Murray finished with 21 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.

- AFP

TOP-SELLING NBA JERSEYS

 

KNICKS BOUNCE BACK VS. PACERS KARL-ANTHONY TOWNS' MSG DEBUT

Oct 25, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) controls the ball against Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) and guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) during the first quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

NEW YORK -- The New York Knicks got obliterated Tuesday in their season opener, done in by a deluge of Boston Celtics triples. An NBA record-tying 29 of them, to be exact.

That taste was still in the Knicks' mouths when they took the floor for their home opener Friday night, and the club used it as fuel to drill the Indiana Pacers 123-98 in Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges's home debut at Madison Square Garden.

"Whenever you get your butt kicked on national TV in the NBA, it means you have to step it up," said wing Josh Hart, one of four New York starters to finish with 20 or more points against Indiana. Bridges and Towns had 21 apiece, while floor general Jalen Brunson finished with a game-high 26.

"I loved the way our guys responded," Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. "The fight we showed was a lot greater."

The result was a satisfying one for the Knicks, who, aside from moving past the embarrassing loss to Boston, were also seeking revenge for last season's Game 7 loss to the Pacers (1-1) at the Garden in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The reversal from the Knicks' season-opening loss was most apparent on the defensive end. In Boston, the Knicks struggled mightily to defend the perimeter. On Friday, New York held the Pacers -- the league's second-best offense last season -- to 3-of-30 from the arc.

In particular, the Knicks' wings were aggressive with Indiana star Tyrese Haliburton, holding him scoreless on eight shots.

"I just was bad, bro. It happens," Haliburton said.

Bridges started the game on Haliburton defensively before giving way to Hart and OG Anunoby for a handful of possessions at a time. The Knicks (1-1) got out in transition a number of times following Pacers turnovers, scoring 29 points off Indiana's 14 miscues during the contest.

The Garden crowd was lively from the jump, lighting up to support Towns -- a local product from suburban New Jersey -- and Bridges for their first meaningful action on the home floor. The game was more or less over midway through the third, when New York pulled ahead by 30 points. But fans were still rowdy by then because of the not only Knicks but also the New York Yankees, who were playing in Game 1 of the World Series.

A massive "Let's Go Yankees!" chant broke out in the fourth quarter after Giancarlo Stanton hit a two-run homer to put the Yanks up 2-1, and then the chant was repeated once Stanton's shot was shown on the arena's video screen. Towns was among the fans doing so, and started waving his towel wildly as he watched the play unfold.

"Oh, I was looking up [at the jumbotron] for sure," said Towns, a Yankees fan who watched the game -- which was ended by the Los Angeles Dodgers' Freddie Freeman with a walk-off grand slam -- intently in the locker room as he was doing his postgame interview.

- Chris Herring, ESPN Senior Writer

KNICKS' JALEN BRUNSON ACCEPTS $156.5M, $113M LESS THAN '25 DEAL

 In a largely unprecedented financial concession to give roster flexibility to a contending franchise, New York Knicks All-NBA guard Jalen Brunson has agreed to a four-year, $156.5 million contract extension -- $113 million less guaranteed than he is eligible to sign for a year from now -- his agent, Sam Rose of CAA, told ESPN on Friday.

The deal, which begins in 2025-26 and will cost Brunson $37.1 million over the next three years, comes with a fourth-year player option, Rose said, and that would set up Brunson to recoup the $113 million on a four-year, $323 million maximum extension in 2028 or a new five-year, $418 million deal in 2029.

Brunson, 27, became eligible to negotiate and sign the maximum extension Friday.

While there is an inherent risk of injury and unforeseen complications that come with Brunson's decision to push back his most lucrative NBA paydays, his priority remains to maximize the prime of his career with the franchise's most talented and deepest roster since the 1990s.

The repercussions of Brunson choosing the four-year, $156.5 million max deal over the five-year, $269.1 million deal in 2025 are massive for the Knicks' ability to keep this team together and continue making roster moves to close the gap on a championship. Brunson's deal keeps the Knicks out of the second-apron level of the salary cap, a punitive threshold that severely limits a team's ability to make trades, sign players and use draft picks.

Getty Images 

Brunson's study of championship organizations and franchise stars -- Patrick Mahomes' Kansas City Chiefs, the Tom Brady New England Patriots and the Derek Jeter New York Yankees -- gave him a blueprint for MVP-level players who structured contracts to give their teams the best chances at sustainable title runs.

Brunson's arrival to the Knicks on a four-year, $104 million free agent deal two years ago has been one of the league's most transformative acquisitions of the past decade. After starting his career as a backup point guard with the Dallas Mavericks, Brunson has blossomed into one of the NBA's most impactful players and leaders. Brunson had his finest NBA season in 2023-24, earning All-NBA honors and finishing top five in the MVP voting. He averaged 28.7 points per game and scored or assisted on a franchise-record 3,481 points. Brunson, who had 11 40-point games in the regular season, became the first Knicks player with 40 points and five assists in four straight playoff games, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

The Knicks presumably became better -- and inarguably more expensive -- this offseason. New York signed OG Anunoby to a five-year, $212.5 million deal and traded for Brooklyn Nets forward Mikal Bridges and the two years, $48 million left on his contract.

Brunson's ties to the Knicks are deep and reflect his faith in the organization. Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose had been Brunson's agent prior to joining the team in 2020. Brunson's father, Rick, is a Knicks assistant coach and was a longtime client of Rose's in his agent days. The Knicks have surrounded Brunson with a starry cast of his former national championship teammates at Villanova to create a remarkable synchronicity on and off the floor.

In the modern era, All-NBA player discounts to allow salary cap flexibility have included San Antonio's Tim Duncan taking $11 million less than the maximum in 2007 to keep Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker and Golden State's Kevin Durant taking $10 million less to keep Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala in 2017. LeBron James accepted $2.6 million less on a two-year, $101 million deal this offseason to avoid the second apron for the Los Angeles Lakers.

This time, Brunson is taking a $37 million loss that comes with $113 million of total risk to chase a title with the Knicks.

ESPN's Bobby Marks contributed to this report.

- Adrian Wojnarowski, ESPN

BRUNSON SCORES 44, KNICKS BEATS PACERS 121-91 TO MOVE A WIN AWAY FROM CONFERENCE FINALS

AP Photo 

 NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Knicks have one more step to climb to reach the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2000.

Jalen Brunson, after a couple rough games, looks ready to take it.

Brunson scored 44 points, reaching 40 for the fifth time in this postseason, and the Knicks beat the Indiana Pacers 121-91 on Tuesday night for a 3-2 lead in their playoff series.

The Knicks rebounded from a blowout loss and guaranteed themselves at least one more game at Madison Square Garden in front of their roaring fans who had been aching to see big games in late spring again. Josh Hart had 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Deuce McBride scored 17 points after he was inserted into the starting lineup.

The No. 2-seeded Knicks can win the series Friday night at Indiana after the first two-day break between games in the series. Caitlin Clark's WNBA home debut with the Indiana Fever is scheduled for Thursday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, causing the extra day that perhaps can benefit a New York team that is playing without four key players.

Game 7, if necessary, would be Sunday afternoon.

“We still need one more win so we can’t get too excited about it,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “We have to understand what we need to do, stay focused on the task at hand. If you feel good about yourself you get knocked down in this league. We’ve got to be ready to go.”

Brunson hurt his right foot in Game 2 and was limited to 18 points Sunday, his lowest of the postseason, when the Pacers ran the Knicks off the floor in a 121-89 romp. He kept insisting he was fine and there was no reason to question that Tuesday.

“I think as a team, no matter what the situation is, we have the same mindset no matter what,” Brunson said. “And regardless of how I’m feeling or someone else is feeling, we know what’s at stake, we know what we have to do and we’re going to figure it out.”

Pulling up quickly for 3-pointers off the dribble or using his series of fakes and spins to set up soft jumpers in the lane, Brunson shot 18 for 35 and again looked like the player who finished fifth this season in MVP voting, not the one who shot 10 for 26 in Game 3 and 6 for 17 on Sunday.

AP Photo

He scored 28 in the first half, a Knicks playoff record, and then put away the game in the fourth with seven straight points, capped by a three-point play that made it 106-86 with 7:57 to go.

Brunson, who scored 43 in Game 1 to become the fourth player in NBA history with four consecutive 40-point games in the playoffs, had plenty of help.

Alec Burks, who had been out of the rotation entirely until re-emerging after a rash of injuries, added 18 points off the bench and Isaiah Hartenstein had seven points and 17 rebounds. Hartenstein grabbed 12 on the offensive end, helping the Knicks overwhelm the Pacers 53-29 on the glass, with 20 offensive rebounds leading to 26 second-chance points.

“We got annihilated on loose balls, rebounds. Gave up 20 offensive rebounds and 29 more shots. So, we all own it,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. “But very embarrassing. Very embarrassing and a hard lesson.”

Pascal Siakam scored 22 points for the sixth-seeded Pacers, who will try to stay unbeaten at home in the postseason to force the decisive game. Myles Turner added 16 but All-Star Tyrese Haliburton had only 13 after averaging 29.7 over the last three games.

Indiana got off to a strong start before the Knicks surged ahead with an 11-0 run en route to a 38-32 lead after one. Carlisle burned three timeouts in the quarter, the crowd seemingly growing louder with each.

Brunson had consecutive baskets for a 13-point lead early in the second quarter and then had the first basket in a 9-0 run that made it 65-47 with 2:11 remaining. A 17-0 run in the third turned an eight-point lead into an 89-64 bulge.

“They killed us on the glass better than they probably have in any game all series,” Haliburton said. “We just didn’t match the intensity level all night.”

The Knicks haven't reached the conference finals since the Pacers beat them in 2000 in the sixth meeting between the teams in eight years. With Patrick Ewing, Latrell Sprewell and Larry Johnson among the players from that era in the crowd, this one had some of that 1990s Knicks-Pacers fierceness in a game featuring five technical fouls.

Isaiah Jackson was called for a foul for a hard pick that knocked Donte DiVincenzo to the court in the first half. Hartenstein walked up and got chest-to-chest with Jackson, and Burks also came in and appeared to bring his hand up and make contact with Jackson. All three players were called for technical fouls.

Later, after DiVincenzo slammed down the miss of Brunson's jumper, he and Turner got tangled up as DiVincenzo tried to fight through a pick. They then screamed at each other after a foul was called and both were given technical fouls as the crowd chanted DiVincenzo's name while referees reviewed the play.

- BRIAN MAHONEY

THE MOMENT JALEN BRUNSON RETURED OVERWHELMED THE PACERS | NBA TODAY

JALEN BRUNSON RETURNS FROM FOOTBALL INJURY, SPARKS KNICKS PAST PACERS FOR 2-0 LEAD IN EASTERN SEMIFINALS

AP Photo 

 NEW YORK (AP) — Jalen Brunson left the locker room on an injured leg, walked onto the court and sent the Madison Square Garden crowd into a frenzy, just as Willis Reed had exactly 54 years earlier.

As the roars turned into “MVP! MVP!” chants, Brunson tried to block out the pain in his body and the noise all around him as he warmed up at halftime.

“It was really cool to hear, but I just knew that I had to get my mind in the right place to figure out how I was going to attack the second half,” Brunson said.

He shook off his right foot injury to score 24 of his 29 points in the final two quarters, leading the New York Knicks to a 130-121 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night for a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

On the anniversary of Reed's dramatic emergence from the locker room before Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals to lead the Knicks to their first title, Brunson had missed the entire second quarter while the Pacers surged ahead to a double-figure lead.

Reed's teammates have said they didn't know if he would play that night. Brunson's had no doubt.

“I mean, he’s a warrior. That’s all I got,” Donte DiVincenzo said. “There was no doubt in my mind that he’ll be back. All season long, no matter what is thrown at him, injury bug or whatever, he always bounces back. And we knew the severity of the game and everything, so we knew, everybody had confidence he was coming back."

Brunson fell short of becoming the second player in NBA history to score 40 or more points in five straight playoff games, but he gave the Knicks everything they needed to move halfway to their first Eastern Conference finals appearance since 2000.

“He’s a great leader, so I think the players all have respect for that, when a guy goes out and is willing to give whatever he has, and so that says a lot about him," Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said.

OG Anunoby added a career playoff-high 28 points before leaving with a left hamstring injury in the third quarter for the injury-riddled Knicks, who have already lost three key players to season-ending injuries.

But they got Brunson back and received huge efforts again from his two Villanova teammates. DiVincenzo scored 28 points and Josh Hart had 19 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists for the No. 2-seeded Knicks.

Tyrese Haliburton rebounded from a poor Game 1 with 34 points, nine assists and six rebounds for the Pacers, who finished the game without coach Rick Carlisle after he got two technical fouls and was ejected.

“Small-market teams deserve an equal shot,” Carlisle said during a postgame complaint about the officiating. “They deserve a fair shot no matter where they are playing.”

The series moves to Indiana for Game 3 on Friday and Game 4 on Sunday.

Former Knicks forward Obi Toppin added 20 points in another strong effort by Indiana’s reserves, but the Pacers hurt themselves by shooting just 10 for 17 (59%) from the free throw line.

Knicks fans profanely jeered Pacers Hall of Famer Reggie Miller, an enemy from the heated 1990s era of this playoff rivalry who was calling the game as part of TNT’s crew, during a delirious finish to what had been a nervous first half, when Brunson was missing for the entire second quarter.

He had made a 3-pointer for a 24-13 lead in the first quarter, giving the Knicks 10 baskets in their first 14 shots in a blistering start. But after Toppin made one for the Pacers on the other end, Brunson began waving to the bench for a substitution as he ran down the court on offense. That was early in an 11-0 run by Indiana to tie it, and it was tied again at 36 after Toppin made three free throws with 0.3 seconds remaining.

The Pacers then made 15 of 22 shots in the second quarter in Brunson’s absence, outscoring the Knicks 37-27 to take a 73-63 lead.

Brunson would only say he felt some discomfort and that once he warmed up, he knew he was going back into the game.

“I had a decision to make and I made a decision,” Brunson said.

Indiana’s lead was 79-70 before the Knicks stormed ahead with a 14-0 run, with Brunson contributing a three-point play during it as New York went ahead 84-79.

Anunoby was hurt soon after, appearing to injure his hamstring while trying to finish a fast-break layup, but Brunson guided the Knicks through the finish with 14 points in the fourth quarter.

With All-Star Julius Randle gone to shoulder surgery and key reserves Mitchell Robinson and Bojan Bogdanovic lost in the playoffs, the Knicks have been relying on their starters to play major minutes — all 48 of them for Hart in both games of the series.

So they can't afford to play without Brunson, who finished fifth in the voting for MVP that Nikola Jokic won Wednesday.

He had joined Jerry West, Michael Jordan and Bernard King as the only players with at least four straight 40-point games in the playoffs, and came in as the leading scorer in the postseason with 36.6 points per game.

Brunson ended up getting fairly close to that despite playing only 32 minutes, saying afterward that teammates were teasing him with Reed jokes.

Isaiah Hartenstein finished with 14 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists for the Knicks, forced to play 39 minutes after the Knicks announced Tuesday that Robinson would miss at least six weeks with a stress injury to his left ankle.

The Knicks paid tribute to Reed's return, one of the most memorable moments in NBA and Madison Square Garden history, during the first quarter. His No. 19 jersey, hanging in the rafters, was spotlighted, and Hall of Fame teammate Walt Frazier came onto the court for an ovation.

- BRIAN MAHONEY

TYRES MAXEY SAVES SIXERS FROM ELIMINATION WITH HUGE FINISH IN OT WIN THAT CUT'S KNICKS' LEAD TO 3-2

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 NEW YORK (AP) — Tyrese Maxey made his Madison Square Garden memory, engineering a season-saving comeback with a rapid-fire flurry that evoked memories of Reggie Miller.

Not that he was thinking about his own legacy as those 3-pointers fell through the net.

“Going through my mind right there was just, find a way to survive,” Maxey said.

The 76ers did. Now they're thinking about advancing.

Maxey saved Philadelphia from elimination with seven points in the final 25 seconds of regulation, finished with 46 and led the 76ers to a 112-106 overtime victory over the New York Knicks on Tuesday night in Game 5 of their first-round series.

The Sixers trailed by six points with 28 seconds left in regulation before Maxey pulled out a comeback that had team trainer Kevin Johnson talking to him about Miller's eight points in nine seconds for Indiana in an out-of-nowhere comeback at Madison Square Garden in 1995.

Asked to describe the feeling, Maxey settled on “mandatory.”

The All-Star guard converted a four-point play with 25 seconds remaining to cut it to two, and after Josh Hart's free throw, pulled up from 35 feet to tie it at 97 with 8.1 seconds left in front of a stunned crowd that was set to celebrate the Knicks' second straight trip to the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Joel Embiid finished with 19 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists for the Sixers, who will host Game 6 on Thursday night.

Jalen Brunson scored 40 points for the Knicks, who were thinking about a possible Game 1 of the second round at MSG on Saturday night. Instead, it could be Game 7 of this series, which seemed all but over.

“It was a tough way to lose because you get up six, eight and then we had a couple turnovers and we’ve got to just be better,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “Play tougher with the lead, use good judgement. Fourth quarter is different, understand the difference. So we can do better and we will.”

It was the second desperate rally to avoid what seemed like certain defeat in what has been a razor-tight series between Atlantic Division rivals. The Knicks won Game 2 after trailing by five points with under 30 seconds remaining.

Embiid, who has been ailing and missed shootaround with a headache, didn’t score like usual after coming into the game with an NBA-leading 35 points per game in the playoffs. But Maxey picked up the load, making seven 3-pointers while adding nine assists.

“I think that considering that our No. 1 option was struggling, for him to say, ‘All right, I got to put this team on my back and go,’ I just kept encouraging him, like, to take his chances, take his shots, make plays,” Sixers coach Nick Nurse said. “And he certainly did it and got in a rhythm and made a whole bunch of them.”

Maxey had the most points by a Sixers player in a win to stave off elimination, surpassing Hall of Famer Allen Iverson's 44 in a Game 7 win against Milwaukee in the 2001 Eastern Conference final.

Maxey's last 3-pointer got the 76ers on the board in overtime after Brunson scored the first five points. That triggered a 9-0 run that Embiid capped with a three-point play with 1:40 remaining for a 106-102 lead, and after Brunson’s 3 tied it at 106, Kelly Oubre Jr. made the tiebreaking basket with 1:02 to go and Tobias Harris followed with two free throws.

Harris had 19 points and Oubre scored 14.

Hart had 18 points and OG Anunoby 17 for the Knicks, who won Game 4 at Philadelphia and didn't appear like they were heading back there. But the Sixers' rally to win by six meant the No. 7 seeds have outscored the Knicks by two total points in the series.

Embiid was the target of the loud and long boos before the game even started, Knicks fans angry after his flagrant foul on Robinson in Game 3 in Philadelphia. They had plenty of chances to jeer him after Embiid also had nine turnovers in a sloppy performance.

But thanks to Maxey, Embiid might be playing in front of that MSG crowd one more time.

“It’s not hostile," Embiid said of the taunts that were frequently profane. “I mean, I love New York. New York is one of my favorite cities in the world. I have (had) a place here for the past five years. I just love New York. And then the fans, when you play against a team, they’re always going to pick that guy and they seem to have picked me, which is fun. I love it.”

Embiid shuffled slowly through the locker room a little more than an hour before the game, resting his head in his hand while he briefly sat before going to warm up. He may have lacked energy, but the 23-year-old Maxey, the winner of the NBA's Most Improved Player award, seems to have a limitless amount.

Robinson returned after missing Game 4 with a sprained left ankle, but the Knicks announced before the game that Bojan Bogdanovic would miss the rest of the playoffs and have surgery on the left foot he injured in Game 4.

The Knicks, who have flourished when Embiid is resting in the series, started a 22-5 run while he was out in the second quarter and went up by 10 points in the period. They were ahead 70-69 going to the fourth.

- BRIAN MAHONEY

NBA ROUNDUP: WOLVES FINISH OFF SWEEP OF SUNS

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 Anthony Edwards scored 31 of his 40 points in the second half and the Minnesota Timberwolves completed a four-game sweep of the host Phoenix Suns with a 122-116 victory on Sunday night in their Western Conference first-round series.

Edwards made seven 3-pointers and had nine rebounds and six assists for the third-seeded Timberwolves. Karl-Anthony Towns added 28 points and 10 rebounds as Minnesota won a playoff series for the first time in 20 years.

Jaden McDaniels added 18 points and Mike Conley had 10 points and seven assists for the Timberwolves, who will face either the Denver Nuggets or Los Angeles Lakers in the second round.

Devin Booker scored a playoff-career-high 49 points for the sixth-seeded Suns. Booker made 13 of 21 shots from the floor and hit 20 of 21 free-throw attempts. Kevin Durant added 33 points on 12-of-17 shooting for Phoenix. He also had nine rebounds, five assists and four blocked shots.

Knicks 97, 76ers 92

Jalen Brunson scored a career playoff-high 47 points to go along with 10 assists as New York defeated host Philadelphia in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference first-round series.

Brunson set a franchise playoff scoring record and also became the first player in franchise history to post at least 30 points and 10 assists in consecutive playoff games. The Knicks lead the series 3-1 with Game 5 set for Tuesday in New York.

Brunson, who shot 18 of 34 from the field and 9 of 11 from the free-throw line, knocked down two free throws with 5.2 seconds remaining for a 97-92 lead. OG Anunoby added 16 points and 14 rebounds, Miles McBride scored 13 and Josh Hart pulled down 17 rebounds.

Joel Embiid led Philadelphia with 27 points, 10 rebounds and two blocked shots. Tyrese Maxey scored 23 points, Kelly Oubre Jr. added 19 and Tobias Harris had 10. Embiid had scored a playoff career-high 50 points despite struggling on his surgically repaired left knee in the Sixers' win over the Knicks in Game 3 on Thursday.

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Pacers 126, Bucks 113

Myles Turner scored 29 points and Tyrese Haliburton added 24 to fuel Indiana to a victory over undermanned Milwaukee in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference first-round series in Indianapolis.

Turner sank seven 3-pointers for the sixth-seeded Pacers, who shot 51.2 percent from beyond the arc and 51.7 percent overall to seize a 3-1 lead in their best-of-seven series. Game 5 is Tuesday in Milwaukee. Haliburton made five 3-pointers despite being added to the injury report as questionable approximately 90 minutes before tipoff due to a balky back.

Milwaukee's Brook Lopez recorded 27 points and nine rebounds and Khris Middleton added 25 and 10, respectively. Malik Beasley added 20 points for the third-seeded Bucks, who were short-handed due to the early ejection of Bobby Portis in addition to the absences of injured stars Damian Lillard and two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.

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Clippers 116, Mavericks 111

Paul George and James Harden each scored 33 points and Los Angeles rallied after coughing up a 31-point lead to beat host Dallas Mavericks in Game 4, evening the Western Conference first-round playoff series.

Luka Doncic finished with 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the Mavericks. Kyrie Irving scored a game-high 40 points on 14-of-25 shooting from the floor, including 6-of-12 from 3-point range. The rest of the Mavericks shot only 5-of-21 from deep, including 1-of-9 from Doncic.

The series, which is tied 2-2, heads back to Los Angeles for Wednesday's Game 5.

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- Reuters 

JOEL EMBIID SCORES 50 POINTS TO LEAD 76ERS PAST KNICKS 125-114 TO CUT DEFICIT TO 2-1

 PHILADELPHIA -- — Joel Embiid is suffering from Bell's palsy and played Game 3 with a bulky knee brace to sturdy the 7-footer after dealing with injuries all season.

The lingering effects of the time off from his most recent knee surgery sucked him into a depression — and that was before Embiid was hit with a form of facial paralysis. Embiid pushed aside the pain — mental and physical — and embraced the pressure after he vowed the 76ers were “going to win this series” against the New York Knicks.

Embiid scored 50 points, making all four 3-point attempts and scoring 18 in a potential series-saving third quarter on Thursday night to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 125-114 win in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.

After getting punished in New York, the Sixers pushed back.

“They want to bring the physicality,” Embiid said. “We can be physical, too.”

Embiid boldly stated “we’re going to win this series” after the 76ers dropped Game 2.

They at least have a shot now — the Knicks lead the series 2-1 and Game 4 is Sunday in Philadelphia.

Embiid was 13 of 19 from the floor, made 19 of 21 free throws and hit five 3-pointers.

Embiid, who scored a franchise-best 70 points against San Antonio in January, became the first player in NBA history to score 50 points on fewer than 20 shots in a playoff game.

Last season’s NBA MVP, Embiid finally turned the crowd -- which had a distinct New York flavor in South Philly --- into one rocking for the home team. The All-Star center played more like a sharpshooting guard in the third, when he saved the season.

The Sixers pecked away at a three-point halftime deficit when Embiid got hot. He hit one 3 and then two more —- the last two with assists from Tyrese Maxey — that gave the Sixers an 82-72 lead. His fourth 3 pushed the lead to 98-85.

Not bad for a career 34% 3-point shooter.

Maxey added two 3s in the quarter and the 76ers went a whopping 9 of 12 from beyond the arc for 43 points.

Embiid mostly kept his cool and was in the mix on both ends of the court all game. Embiid had 17 points, three fouls and he even grabbed Mitchell Robinson and dragged him to the court in a first half where they again weren't good enough to look like a team that could beat the Knicks.

Embiid was whistled for a flagrant foul on the play. Robinson suffered a sprained left ankle and left the arena in a boot.

“I didn't mean to hurt anybody,” Embiid said. “In those situations, I've got to protect myself.”

Embiid said he first started suffering from the affliction about a “day or two” before the Sixers played the Miami Heat on April 17 in the play-in tournament.

“My left side of my face, my mouth and my eye,” Embiid said. “It’s been tough. But I’m not a quitter. I’m going to keep fighting through anything.”

The Knicks won the first two games in New York, highlighted by Donte DiVincenzo's go-ahead 3-pointer with 13 seconds left in Game 2. Against the backdrop of two Villanova national championship banners they helped the program win, the trio of former Wildcats were largely stifled in Game 3.

Jalen Brunson did lead the Knicks with 39 points and 13 assists. Josh Hart — whose spectacular 3-point shooting in New York was an unexpected bonus for the Knicks — scored 20 points but DiVincenzo had five.

Hart said he was “all for tough playoff fouls” but Embiid's foul could have put Robinson out for a “serious amount of time.”

The Knicks must have felt at home inside a Sixers' arena that sounded more like Madison Square Garden as chants of "Let's Go Knicks!' echoed throughout the arena for a chunk of the game. John Starks wildly cheered them on from his courtside.

The Sixers countered with Allen Iverson, who along with Embiid and Billy Cunningham are the only players in franchise history to hit 50 points in a playoff game.

But nostalgia didn't matter much between teams that played each other in a postseason series for the first time since 1989.

This one could be shaping up as one to remember.

Embiid was serenaded with “MVP! MVP!” chants as he stretched the lead from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter.

“Joel Embiid has been banned from the Empire State Building,” was posted on the skyscraper's social media account.

Maxey finished with 25 points. Kelly Oubre Jr. had 15 points and showed no lingering effects following his reported involvement in a car crash after Game 2. Cam Payne hit three 3s and scored 11 points.

“I think Cam Payne was the MVP of the game," 76ers guard Kyle Lowry said.

Outside of a disputed call on Embiid's flagrant, Game 3 was played without any significant disputes with the officiating after the NBA said the referees missed several late calls in Game 2.

Embiid's 21 free-throw attempts were more than New York attempted the entire game; the Knicks made 13 of 19.

“I'll send my clips in like I do every game,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “They'll say marginal contact. Then they'll say marginal contact on Embiid and he'll be at the line 21 times. That's just the way it works.”

TYRESE MAXEY FOULED TWICE DURING CHAOTIC SEQUENCE, L2MR SAYS

Tyrese Maxey scored 35 points in the Sixers' Game 2 loss to the Knicks on Monday. The All-Star point guard was named the NBA's Most Improved Player on Tuesday.

 In its Last Two Minute Report for the New York Knicks' miraculous 104-101 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series Monday night, the NBA ruled that Tyrese Maxey was fouled multiple times during the game's frenetic defining sequence, and that 76ers coach Nick Nurse called for a timeout but the referees didn't see it.

The league said Jalen Brunson grabbed Maxey's jersey before the ball was inbounded after Brunson's 3-pointer cut Philadelphia's lead to two, and that Josh Hart then bumped Maxey as he caught the inbounds pass, sending him falling to the ground.

Maxey then committed a turnover trying to pass the ball after he fell to the ground, which led to Donte DiVincenzo missing a potential go-ahead 3-pointer and then making one that proved to be the winning shot with 13 seconds remaining.

"[Maxey] did his job," Joel Embiid said after the game, when asked whether he needed to say anything to his star guard following the turnover and a blocked potential go-ahead layup in the closing seconds. "That's on the league. That's on the NBA. That's on the frigging referees. I hate to put the game on them. But I am sure the two-minute report is going to come out and we are going to see what happened.

"But like I said, that's unacceptable. That's not on him. That's not on any of us. We fought for 47 minutes and whatever 20 seconds. For that to happen ... that's not OK."

The report also said that as Sixers point guard Kyle Lowry was inbounding the ball, Nurse was calling for a timeout but the officials didn't grant it -- as Nurse himself said to open his news conference after Monday's game.

Though the report did say Nurse tried to call a timeout a second time, that one shouldn't have been granted because Maxey didn't have control of the ball at that point.

"Well, the first thing is obviously they score," Nurse said. "We take a look at getting it in quick. We don't get it in quick. I call timeout. Referee looked right at me. Ignored me. Went into Tyrese, I called timeout again. Then the melee started.

"I guess I got to run out onto the floor or do something to make sure and get his attention, but I needed a timeout there to advance it. Would've been good.

"But, couldn't get it."

In addition to those calls, the Last Two Minute Report said two other calls were missed: an Embiid foul on DiVincenzo in the moments before Brunson's 3-pointer, and a defensive three seconds violation by Knicks forward OG Anunoby with just over a minute remaining.

None of that changes the ultimate result, however, as New York has taken a commanding 2-0 lead in its best-of-seven series with Philadelphia behind the remarkable comeback, which saw the Knicks become the first team since 1996 to come back from down five within the final 30 seconds of a playoff game and win in regulation, per SportRadar.

And while the NBA admitted the calls were missed, the 76ers will not be able to get the end of the game replayed. The Knicks tried a similar maneuver earlier this year when referee Jacyn Goble made an incorrect call on Brunson fouling Houston Rockets guard Aaron Holiday at the end of a game in Houston, only for New York's protest to get denied because it could not demonstrate that there was a misapplication of the playing rules, rather than human error.

The last successful protest was in 2008, when the Miami Heat won a protest of a loss to the Atlanta Hawks after Shaquille O'Neal fouled out of a game but had only committed five personal fouls, causing the final 51.9 seconds to be replayed at a later date.

Game 3 of the series will be Thursday night in Philadelphia, with Game 4 to follow Sunday afternoon.

- Tim Bontemps, ESPN

STEPHEN CURRY, SABRINA LONESCU HEADLINE NBA ALL-STAR SATURDAY

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 Stephen Curry sensed he was in trouble as he neared the end of his round but suddenly flashed the ability that has helped him make a record 3,642 3-pointers in regular-season play.

It was good timing as WNBA standout Sabrina Ionescu put on a stellar shooting performance of her own. But Curry made 4 of 5 shots from the right corner to end his round and overtake Ionescu to win 29-26 in the special 3-point competition between the two prolific shooters during All-Star Saturday Night in Indianapolis.

The genesis for the Curry-Ionescu showdown came when Curry was talking to Golden State Warriors teammate Brandin Podziemski in a video about Ionescu's stellar performance in last year's WNBA All-Star 3-point competition.

Curry pondered a competition with Ionescu, and the latter made it clear on social media that she was up for the challenge.

Ionescu, who plays for the New York Liberty, started on the left side of the court and made nine of her first 10 shots.

ANTETOKOUNMPO, BUCKS BREEZE PAST KNICKS 146-122 , INTO SEMIFINALS OF IN-SEASON TOURNAMENT

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MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo had 35 points and 10 assists, Damian Lillard added 28 points, and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the New York Knicks 146-122 on Tuesday night to reach the semifinals of the NBA's inaugural In-Season Tournament.

The Bucks posted a season high in scoring, shooting 60.5% (23 of 38) from 3-point range and 60.4% overall to set up a matchup with Indiana in Las Vegas on Thursday.

“Tonight was a huge step. We wanted to get to Vegas but when we get to Vegas we’ve got to take care of business. We've got two games to win there," coach Adrian Griffin said. “I thought tonight our team was the better team. Our bench was terrific and I thought the crowd was terrific. It had all the makings of a playoff game.”

Griffin anticipates a strong challenge from the Pacers.

“We expect their best, but when we are at our best, I love our chances,” he said.

Lillard said the Bucks are headed to Las Vegas with the intent of bringing home a championship and setting a tone for the rest of the season.

“You come out of this thing on top, I think it’s a pretty strong statement and something that everybody around the league has to respect,” he said.