Knicks complete record Finals comeback, edge Spurs

The New York Knicks erased a 29-point deficit Wednesday night and moved within one win of their first NBA championship since 1973, beating the San Antonio Spurs 107-106 on OG Anunoby’s tip-in with 1.2 seconds left in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.

Anunoby followed Jalen Brunson’s missed long 3-pointer with the decisive basket at Madison Square Garden, completing the largest comeback in NBA Finals history and giving New York a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series. The Knicks can clinch the title Saturday night in Game 5 in San Antonio.

No team had come back from more than 24 points down in a Finals game since the NBA began keeping detailed play-by-play for all four quarters in 1997. Boston held that mark after rallying against the Los Angeles Lakers in 2008. The only larger comeback on record in any playoff game was the Los Angeles Clippers’ 31-point rally against Golden State in a 2019 first-round series.

For much of the night, the Knicks looked beaten. San Antonio built a 27-point halftime lead, the largest by a visiting team in the Finals, and led 81-52 in the third quarter. Victor Wembanyama controlled long stretches of the game, and the Spurs made 11 of their first 16 3-point attempts.

Then the game turned. New York held San Antonio to 14 points on 4-for-20 shooting in the third quarter, using a 13-0 run to cut the margin to 90-75 entering the fourth. The Knicks then ripped off a 28-9 burst over a little more than seven minutes, turning stops into transition chances as the Garden crowd came back to life.

Brunson drove through traffic for a layup with 1:22 remaining to give New York its first lead, 105-104. San Antonio had a chance to stretch its lead before that, but Wembanyama missed two free throws with 1:47 left and the Spurs ahead 104-103.

The Spurs briefly recovered when Stephon Castle made two free throws with 30 seconds left, putting San Antonio back in front. But the Knicks had the final possession, and Anunoby converted after Brunson’s miss.

Brunson finished with 36 points for New York, while Anunoby scored 33. Wembanyama had 24 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks for San Antonio, but shot 9 for 25 from the field. Dylan Harper added 21 points for the Spurs, and De’Aaron Fox and Devin Vassell each scored 18.

The Spurs, who won Game 3 and appeared on course to even the series, went cold after halftime. After their early 3-point barrage, they shot 3 for 17 from behind the arc in the second half as the Knicks outscored them 58-30.

“We got on our heels — we missed some shots,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “It’s disappointing, to say the least.”

The first three games of the series had been won by road teams, only the second time that had happened in the Finals. San Antonio was close to extending that streak before New York’s rally changed the series.

Fans inside Madison Square Garden sang along to Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” after the final buzzer, and thousands poured into Manhattan streets to celebrate. Taylor Swift attended the game. President Donald Trump, who attended Game 3, was not present, though CBS News reported that the same security restrictions remained around the arena, prompting the Knicks to drop plans for an outdoor watch party.

If San Antonio wins Saturday, the series will return to New York for Game 6 on Tuesday.