Home BASKETBALL NBA Game 5 Finals Recap: Brunson’s Fourth-Quarter Surge Lifts Knicks Past San Antonio

Game 5 Finals Recap: Brunson’s Fourth-Quarter Surge Lifts Knicks Past San Antonio

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Knicks heroics snap 53-year finals drought in game 5
Knicks heroics snap 53-year finals drought in game 5

Jalen Brunson scored a franchise-record in an NBA Finals game as the Knicks beat the Spurs 92-90 in Game 5. Wembanyama and Harper starred for San Antonio but Brunson’s fourth-quarter takeover sealed it.


Jalen Brunson ends 53-year wait as Knicks capture first NBA championship...


The Knicks struggled from the field in a rough first half, but Brunson took over after halftime. He scored 29 of his 45 points in the second half, carrying New York on his back all the way to the title.


Brunson finished 14-of-27 shooting, including 4-of-7 from three and 13-of-15 at the line, adding 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. His 45-point night set a Knicks record for most points in a single Finals game, and he was named Finals MVP.


With that performance, Brunson joined Michael Jordan, Jerry West, Kobe Bryant, James Harden, and Allen Iverson as the only guards in NBA history with double-digit 40-point games in the playoffs.


Brunson stood alone as no other Knick topped 15 points in Game 5. But the slump ends here. After taking down the Spurs, the Larry O'Brien Trophy returns to New York for the first time in more than half a century.




San Antonio came out locked in on defense. The Spurs smothered New York in the opening quarter, holding the Knicks to just 4-of-22 shooting - 18% from the field.


Only Brunson and OG Anunoby found the basket early. Brunson had 8 and Anunoby added 5, combining for all 13 of the Knicks’ first-quarter points. The rest of the roster went 0-for-11 from the floor.


Wembanyama set the tone immediately. He blocked three shots in the first four minutes and scored the game’s first points - which didn’t arrive until nearly three minutes had passed.




San Antonio jumped out to an 18-8 lead, marking the fifth straight game they opened with a double-digit first-quarter advantage.


Even with only six field goals and nine turnovers by the 7:30 mark of the second quarter, New York clawed back fast. Brunson led the charge and pulled them right back into it.


Brunson dropped 16 points on 3-of-4 shooting from three, and Dylan Harper added 11. They were the only two players in double figures before halftime. New York’s bench went 0-for-8, while Brunson alone hit six of the Knicks’ 13 first-half field goals.




New York closed the half on a 10-2 run to trim it to 40-37 with a minute left. Those 37 points were still the Knicks’ lowest-scoring half of the entire Finals.


Wembanyama headed to the locker room just shy of a double-double: 9 points on 3-of-10 shooting, 9 rebounds, 5 blocks and 2 assists. With those five blocks, he became only the sixth player since 1998 to notch 5+ blocks in a Finals half - joining Spurs legend Tim Duncan from 2003.


Devin Vassell beat the halftime buzzer with his second field goal of the night. San Antonio’s shooting didn’t improve much either - they hit just 34% in the half. Overall, it was a gritty, sloppy 24 minutes of basketball.




Wembanyama came out firing after halftime. He wasted no time picking up a 12-point, 10-rebound double-double, then carried a 16-point, 12-rebound stat line into the fourth quarter.


But Game 5’s second half belonged to the rookie. Dylan Harper was the brightest spot for San Antonio down the stretch, stealing the show when it mattered most.




With 4:21 left in the third, Harper was still lighting it up off San Antonio’s bench. He had 18 points by then, and the Spurs’ reserves had completely dominated the Knicks’ bench 21-0.


San Antonio ripped off a 9-0 run in that stretch, and Harper scored every single point of it.


He finished the night 10-of-19 from the floor, 2-of-4 from three, with a career-high 25 points. He also added 5 assists, 4 rebounds and a block.




Brunson dropped 14 points by himself in the third, but New York’s bench stayed silent. Jordan Clarkson finally broke the drought with a floater at the 39.5-second mark - their first bench points of the quarter.


Mitchell Robinson added a quick two right after, but that was it. The Knicks’ bench entered the fourth with just 4 points total, and New York trailed 72-65.


Wembanyama ignited the arena to open the fourth. He threw down a baseline dunk that pushed San Antonio’s lead to 77-68 and sent the crowd into a frenzy.




Brunson kept carrying the Knicks. He poured in 10 huge points in the fourth, tying it at 83-83, then put New York up 86-85 with under 3:40 left after getting fouled on a three and sinking all three free throws.


That bucket gave the Knicks their first lead since the opening 5-4. By the time the night was over, Brunson had set the franchise record for most points by a Knick in an NBA Finals game.




Karl-Anthony Towns picked up his sixth foul with 1:53 left and New York clinging to an 88-85 lead. That sent Wembanyama to the line right after San Antonio had missed 9 of their last 10 shots.


Wemby split the pair to cut it to one, then Harper hit a tough turnaround to knot it at 88. But Brunson answered immediately, dropping in another bucket to put the Knicks back up 90-88.




Stephon Castle scored his first points of the night on a tip-in to make it 92-90 with 16.3 seconds left, but New York held on. The Knicks kept the lead all the way to 0.0 and closed it out.




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