Keep track of Game 4 of the NBA Finals as the San Antonio Spurs seek to forge a tie with the New York Knicks.
The New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs are going “four” it all as the NBA Finals rage on.
With both teams now on the board in the best-of-seven series, New York and San Antonio now face a fateful fourth game at Madison Square Garden, one that’s set to set a tone for the rest of the championship set.
The Knicks still lead the series 2-1 but the Spurs stole one from Manhattan after taking a narrow 115-111 decision in the third game on Monday night. After a brutal ending to Game 2, Victor Wembanyama broke loose for 32 points while Stephon Castle was close behind with 23. New York had solid efforts from Jalen Brunson (32 points) and OG Anunoby (28) but that wasn’t enough to overcome some costly turnovers. Monday marked the first NBA Finals game since 1999, which also came against the Spurs.
Wednesday’s game could well set a course for the rest of the series: the Spurs are no doubt aware that only one team, the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers, has come back from a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals while the Knicks continue to seek an end to their championship drought that has spanned over a half-century. This is the first NBA Finals where the road team won the first three games since 1993, when the Chicago Bulls downed the Phoenix Suns.
FINAL: Knicks 107, Spurs 106 (Knicks lead series 3-1)
Spurs (106)
POINTS: Victor Wembanyama (24)
ASSISTS: De’Aaron Fox (7)
REBOUNDS: Victor Wembanyama (13)
Knicks (107)
POINTS: Jalen Brunson (36)
ASSISTS: Josh Hart (6)
REBOUNDS: Karl-Anthony Towns (10)
4th Quarter: Knicks 107, Spurs 106
0.0—The largest comeback in NBA Finals history is officially complete, as Harper’s inbounds pass to Castle fails to produce a shot. Knicks lead the series 3-1, one win away from their first NBA championship since 1973.
1.2—Brunson’s three falls short but Anunoby’s immediate putback gives the Knicks the lead. Timeout Spurs (107-106 NYK)
5.7—Fox forces the ball into the backcourt, but misses a layup. Knicks get the ball back and San Antonio uses a foul to give. Timeout Knicks.
30.3—Fox’s shot falls short but Castle is fouled by Hart on the putback. He hits both. Timeout Knicks, one left. (106-105 SAS)
38.8—The Spurs crack down defensively and force a 24-second violation. Robinson and Alvarado replace Towns and Brunson for defensive purposes. Timeout Spurs.
1:02—Castle steps on the baseline on a drive, sending possession back New York’s way.
1:22—The comeback is complete, as Brunson’s drive gives the Knicks their first lead after trailing by 29. (105-104 NYK)
1:47—Hart steals a Fox pass but misses a layup on the other end. He fouls Wembanyama, who misses two at the line.
2:21—Brunson three makes it a one-point game (104-103 SAS)
2:42—Fox’s three goes out of bounds. Knick ball.
3:07—Alvarado three. Down to four. (104-100 SAS)
3:31—Wembanyama stops a cold streak with a double from the foul line (104-97 SAS)
3:50—Alvarado responds with a double (102-97 SAS)
4:11—Fox hits a three out of the timeout (102-95 SAS)
4:32—Anunoby hits a three and its down to four. Another timeout for San Antonio (99-95 SAS)
5:21—Another Brunson drives puts him over 30 and the Spurs lead down to seven. (99-92 SAS)
6:09—Brunson’s layup falls short but he goes to the line via Castle foul, the latter’s fifth. He hits two. (99-90 SAS)
6:24—Alvarado’s fifth foul sends Castle back to the line. Two more. (99-88 SAS)
6:36—Down to single digits after Towns backs down Wembanyama, following Anunoby’s interception of a Harper pass (97-88 SAS)
7:03—Anunoby’s sixth three-point cuts the gap to 11 (97-86 SAS)
7:14—Castle goes to the line for two after an Alvarado foul. He hit two. Anunoby checks back in in-between shots. San Antonio is in the bonus (97-83 SAS)
7:28—Towns beats the shot clock to hit a three. The game is as close as it has been since the first quarter. Those three are Towns’ first points of the fourth quarter in any game these Finals. (95-83 SAS)
8:44—Bridges puts in a bank off the feed from Hart, slicing it back to 15 again. Timeout Spurs. (95-80 SAS)
9:16—Alvarado responds with a corner three on the New York end. (95-78 SAS)
9:34—Wembanyama palms his own rebounded miss and puts the Spurs back up 20 on the putback (95-75 SAS)
10:37—Wembanyama goes to the line after an Anunoby foul (and blown Robinson dunk). He hits one. (93-75 SAS)
11:12—McBride misses a three on the Knicks’ awarded possession and Harper responds with a driving double on the other end (92-75 SAS)
11:46—Robinson blocks Wembanyama and then forces a deflection out of bounds. Knicks challenge, claiming it went off Wembanyama. Knicks win and take possession.
3rd Quarter: Spurs 90, Knicks 75
0.0—Wembanyama’s would-be buzzer-beater falls short, leaving a manageable 15-point lead on the scoreboard heading into the final frame.
52.4—After Fox throws it out of bounds, Anunoby gets a hometown bounce for yet another three (90-75 SAS)
1:46—Vassell gets the Spurs’ outside mojo back with a three (90-72 SAS)
1:57—After a possession where they’re fruitless on three tries, Wembanyama is fouled on a rebound by Jordan Clarkson.
2:44—The streak continues after the timeout, with Brunson finding Robinson for an alley-oop (87-72 SAS)
2:58—Another double from Brunson which precedes a Harper airball. Timeout Knicks (87-70 SAS)
3:36—Harper’s turnaround pushes it back to 19 (87-68 SAS)
3:52—Brunson nabs momentum back on a Harper foul and hits an acrobatic two. One more at the foul line, so another three for the Knicks (85-68 SAS)
4:10—Wembanyama immediately gets a three off a Hart miss and it leads to free throws for Harper. He also hits both. (85-65 SAS)
4:35—Spurs get a chance to quell the Knicks run on a Hart foul on Castle. He hits both. Wembanyama returns after a 58-second absence. (83-65 SAS)
5:30—13 straight for New York after a Hart three (81-65 SAS)
6:50—After a series of misses, Anunoby finally continues the Knicks’ run with a three. Lead down to 19 and the Knick run up to 10-0 (81-62 SAS)
8:23—An Anunoby dunk and Brunson three narrows the gap to 22 and leads to a San Antonio timeout (81-59 SAS)
9:27—Following a Fox three, Wembanyama elbows Towns, who is shaken up after. It’s under review for a hostile act. It is upgraded and Towns hits two at the line. (81-54 SAS)
10:09—Castle is charged with an offensive foul, his fourth. Johnson comes in for him.
10:37—After Anunoby is stripped by Vassell, Wembanyama hits a corner three on the other end (79-52 SAS)
11:04—Anunoby opens scoring with a three-pointer (76-52 SAS)
Halftime Leaders
Spurs (76)
POINTS: Victor Wembanyama (16)
ASSISTS: De’Aaron Fox (6)
REBOUNDS: Victor Wembanyama (6)
Knicks (49)
POINTS: Jalen Brunson (19)
ASSISTS: Jalen Brunson/Josh Hart (3)
REBOUNDS: Josh Hart (6)
2nd Quarter: Spurs 76, Knicks 49
0.0—Another Fox buzzer-beater falls short, but the Spurs maintain a healthy lead going into the break.
58.5—Harper sinks a three in the corner, silencing the Knick crowd. It’s San Antonio’s 14th three-pointer, setting a new record for most in a half of an NBA Finals game. (76-49 SAS)
1:16—A Wembanyama tip stalls this mini-Knick run but Brunson again scores (73-49 SAS)
1:45—Brunson goes to the line again, hitting 1-of-2. (71-47 SAS)
2:21—After Brunson hits one of two, Castle is charged with his third when he fouls Hart on a rebound. He misses both, but gets his own rebound and Brunson hits a three (71-46 SAS)
3:06—Another bank from Harper, who has scored the last seven Spur points (71-42 SAS)
3:48—Harper breaks an exchange of doubles with a three-pointer (69-42 SAS)
4:31—After an exchange of doubles, San Antonio forces a 24-second violation (64-40 SAS)
5:09—Anunoby hits two after a Fox foul (62-40 SAS)
5:45—Hukporti forces a jump ball against Wembanyama but Vassell hits a three just before the shot clock expires, remaining perfect from deep (62-38 SAS)
6:12—Back-to-back doubles from Brunson, the former earned on a steal-turned-fastbreak, leads to a San Antonio timeout. (59-38 SAS)
6:54—Kornet picks up two fouls, the latter for pushing Robinson after he enters the game for Towns (an attempt to get him to the foul line). Brunson hit a three around the proximity and officials are taking a look at the timing. It’s ruled before Brunson’s shot, so Robinson goes to the line for two. He hits neither.
7:31—Towns gets his third foul, this one of the offensive variety. He remains in.
7:54—Clarkson gets a crowdpleasing driving double, but the Knicks can’t get back in time, allowing Bryant to score on an alley-oop from Castle (59-34 SAS)
8:43—Another Brunson two is wiped out by a three, this one by Champagnie. (57-32 SAS)
9:14—Bryant hits a corner three, San Antonio’s 10th (54-30 SAS)
9:40—Harper responds to a Brunson double with his first three of the night (51-30 SAS)
10:25—Towns is fouled by Carter Bryant on a successful putback. He hits the awarded free throw (48-28 SAS)
10:45—Fox hits another three and Alvarado is charged with an away from the ball fouled. It’s being reviewed for a flagrant. It remains a common foul and Wembanyama hits his single. (48-25 SAS)
11:21—Fox responds on the other end instantly with his first three (44-25 SAS)
11:36—Another corner three opens scoring in the second (41-25 SAS)
1st Quarter: Spurs 41, Knicks 22
0.0—Fox’s would-be closer falls short and the period ends with the Spurs up 19.
19.7—Castle picks up his second foul and Brunson goes to the line. Harper replaces Castle and Brunson hits two (41-22 SAS)
27.7—Vassell reaches a dozen with a jumping double (41-20 SAS)
41.7—Wembanyama draws an offensive foul on Robinson. It will be reviewed for a flagrant. It is upgraded to flagrant one and Wembanyama sinks two free throws. Spurs ball. (39-20 SAS)
45.9—Wembanyama creates a new largest lead on an interior bank (37-20 SAS)
1:50—Now the Knicks are called for defensive three seconds. Vassell sinks the freebie. Towns sits for Robinson. (35-20 SAS)
2:15—Following a Dylan Harper double, the Spurs are called for defensive three seconds. Towns hits the free throw (34-20 SAS)
2:53—Anunoby is fouled by Vassell on a would-be dunk. He hits two. (32-19 SAS)
3:19—Thought it appeared to be on the rim, Wembanyama tips back his own miss upon checking back in. The 15-point lead is the largest either team has held in the series to date. (32-17 SAS)
3:32—Following a controversial Kornet block (which could’ve been goaltending) and a tie-up between Fox and Jose Alvarado, Towns checks back in. San Antonio gets possession on the jumpball via Alvarado loose-ball foul.
4:13—Fox gets in on the three-point party after the subs (30-17 SAS)
4:23—After he’s fouled by Hukporti, Wembanyama sits down for the first time, replaced by Luke Kornet. Robinson returns in place of Hukporti while Miles McBride also checks in for New York.
4:40—Mikal Bridges baskets, including a corner three, sandwich a Keldon Johnson bank. (27-17 SAS)
5:51—Wembanyama hits a three, improving San Antonio to 5-of-6 from distance (25-12 SAS)
6:05—Jalen Brunson hits two at the foul line after a Castle foul. The Knicks have Ariel Hukporti replace Robinson (22-12 SAS)
6:22—Three threes for Vassell, and the Spurs go back up by double-figures (22-10 SAS)
6:58—Five points on two possessions from Castle boosts the lead to nine (19-10 SAS)
8:02—Following a Stephon Castle miss, Hart drives against Champagnie and draws a crowd-pleasing and-one. He hits the single. (14-10 SAS)
8:26—Anunoby draws the Knicks’ first free throws after a Wembanyama bank and Fox foul. He hits them both (14-7 SAS)
8:53—It takes four tries but OG Anunoby hits a three in the corner after the Knicks timeout. (12-5 SAS)
9:18—Julian Champagnie takes one from Josh Hart and turns it into a dunk. Timeout Knicks. San Antonio has had a double-figure lead in the first quarter in each of the first four games. (12-2 SAS)
9:34—Corner three from Vassell boosts the lead (10-2 SAS)
10:44—Wembanyama scores on hte other end after the challenge. (7-2 SAS)
10:55—Wembanyama is charged with his first foul on a Towns drive. San Antonio is challenging the call. The call is overturned to an offensive foul against Towns. He sits down for Mitchell Robinson.
11:10—Devin Vassell sinks the game’s first three (5-2 SAS)
11:22—Towns scores on the other end to tie the game (2-2)
11:42—De’Aaron Fox gets to the foul line on San Antonio’s first possession, Towns on the foul. He hits two for the first points (2-0 SAS)
12:00—With Swift, Sandler, Spike, Seinfeld, and more in attendance, Victor Wembanyama wins the tip from Karl-Anthony Towns, and the game is underway.
Pregame
WHAT: NBA Finals Game 4
WHO: (3) San Antonio Spurs at (2) New York Knicks (NYK leads series 2-1)
WHERE: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
WHEN: Wednesday, 8:30 p.m. ET, ABC
WAGER: NYK —1.5 (o/u: 216.5)
Starting Lineups
SPURS: Stephon Castle, Julian Champagnie, De’Aaron Fox, Devin Vassell, Victor Wembanyama
KNICKS: OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, Karl-Anthony Towns
Injuries
SPURS: N/A
KNICKS: Mitchell Robinson (hand, AVAILABLE)
Officials
Courtney Kirkland, James Williams, Zach Zarba
Geoff Magliocchetti is on X @GeoffJMags
Editor’s Pick
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