The Philadelphia 76ers seemingly threw in the towel way too early in Game 1 against the New York Knicks.
The Knicks outlasted the 76ers 111-104 in front of a capacity crowd at Madison Square Garden in New York City, N.Y.
Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey scored a layup with 30 seconds to play that cut Philly’s deficit to 109-104. But instead of fouling, the 76ers appeared content to just let the Knicks milk the clock.
Knicks wing OG Anunoby took and missed a shot with six seconds left to beat the shot clock buzzer. His teammate Josh Hart grabbed the dagger offensive rebound to seal the victory for the Knicks.
Even if the 76ers had secured the defensive rebound after the miss, they would have had about five seconds left to make up a five-point deficit. Philadelphia also had two timeouts and could have kept its chances alive had they played the foul game.
The late-game decision unsurprisingly drew criticism from fans and reporters on social media.
Knicks star Jalen Brunson didn’t have the best Game 1. He tallied 22 points on 8-of-26 shooting to go along with seven rebounds and seven assists.
Brunson’s Knicks teammates picked up the slack — and then some. Josh Hart finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Miles McBride tacked on 21 points and five threes off the bench.
Hart also hit the dagger three in the final minute that put the Knicks up seven with a minute to play.
The Sixers got a game-high 29 points from Joel Embiid. Despite the loss for Philly, Embiid surviving a Game 1 injury scare may have been a win in and of itself.
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