JALEN Brunson knocked down a go-ahead triple as New York Knicks ousted Detroit Pistons, 116-113, in Game 6 to wrap up their NBA Eastern Conference on Thursday night (Friday in the Philippines) at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan.
After tying the score at 113-all with an 8-1 scoring run spearheaded by Brunson, he surged the Knicks ahead at 116-113 with 4.3 seconds left after eluding the defense of Detroit’s Ausar Thompson for a three-point hit from the left wing.
The Pistons had a chance to send the match in overtime and possibly win their first playoff home game in years but Malik Beasley mishandled the pass of Cade Cunningham.
Brunson finished the game with 40 points, including three three-pointers, to go with seven assists and four rebounds as the No. 3 seed Knicks wrapped up their best-of-seven first round series at 4-2.
Mikal Bridges added 25 markers, O.G Anunoby contributed 22 points, while Josh Hart and Karl-Anthony Towns contributed 13 and 10 points, respectively, for the Knicks, which will next face defending champions Boston Celtics.
Cunningham led the Pistons with 23 points, eight assists, and seven rebounds, Jalen Duren chipped in 21 markers, while Beasley, Thompson, and Tobias Harris had 20, 17, and 14 markers, respectively.
Meanwhile, Los Angeles Clippers saved their season with a 111-105 victory over Denver Nuggets in Game 6 of their Western Conference first round series, forcing a Game 7 this Sunday.
James Harden led the way with 28 points to go with eight assists, six rebounds, two steals, and a block, while Kawhi Leonard added 27 markers as the Clippers tied their best-of-seven series at 3-3.
Norman Powell stepped up with 24 markers, including a three-pointer to stretch the Clippers lead to 110-103 late in the game, while Ivica Zubac contributed 10 markers in the win.
Nikola Jokic finished with 25 points, eight assists, and seven rebounds, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon added 21 and 19 markers, respectively, while Russell Westbrook and Christian Braun had 14 apiece for the Nuggets./PN
BOX SCORE:
NEW YORK 116 – Brunson 40, Bridges 25, Anunoby 22, Hart 13, Towns 10, McBride 3, Payne 2, Robinson 1.
DETROIT 113 – Cunningham 23, Duren 21, Beasley 20, Thompson 17, Harris 14, Schroder 9, Hardaway 7, Reed 2.
Quarterscores: 37-23, 59-61, 96-85, 116-113.
