It is an old truth that many geese beat pigs. In the duel between the New York Knicks and the Philadelphia 76ers, the two superstars of the City of Brotherly Love, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, are in vain, the balanced team performance of the Manhattanites is proving to be stronger so far, even if Jaylen Brunson does not bring the dazzling game that he did in the regular season. .
His shooting performance is impressive, in the two games of the series against the 76ers so far, he is 16/55, i.e. 29 percent, but since his two university colleagues from the Villanova University team, primarily Josh Hart, but also his dorm roommate, Donte DiVincenzo, are excelling, the three of them ensure the superiority so far.
It is also unprecedented at the national level that three players from one college are on one NBA team, and all three were members of the 2016 NCAA champion Villanova’s team!
The second game of the series was already lost for the Knicks, with 27 seconds to go, the 76ers were still leading 101-96, but first Brunson’s triple from the corner hit the target while the ball bounced around the hoop (99–101), then Josh Hart, who worked the entire 48 minutes without rest, stole the ball from Maxey, and then DiVincenzo finished the action with a three-point basket (102–101). After that, Hartenstein blocked Maxey’s throw, Anunoby sold two penalties (104–101), finally Embiid missed the triple at the last moment, won 104–101 for the Knicks.
A killer trio
A little recap of the crazy game, including DiVincenzo’s killer triple after the big scrimmage:
The other star pairing is the battle between the Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles Lakers, on one side with MVP title contender Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, on the other side with the legend, 39-year-old LeBron James and Anthony Davis with the raised eyebrows (The Brow). .
With the flawless play of Davis and Russell, the Lakers already gained a twenty-point advantage at the beginning of the third quarter (68–48), Davis already had 32 points in the middle of the third quarter with a 14/17 field goal, and Russell was 7/10 from three-pointers when the home team started to cut the deficit. Just like two days before. And by the end of the game, the difference was reduced to ten points (79–69), which is a visible distance.
Life under the ring
A little taste of Davis’ game under the ring:
D’Angelo Russell already had a playoff career high in threes in just three quarters:
But in the 40th minute it’s already 82–At 77, Darwin Ham, the coach of the Lakers, had to ask for time, the pie was heating up from the point of view of the guests! Moreover, with Murray’s double, he is already 83–81!
But then James came and hit two threes from somewhere in the Rockies, Vale or Aspen… 89–81. But there was also a way back from here with Aaron Gordon’s two good penalties and Jokic’s double (89–85), now Ham again asked for time. This was truly a duel of giants.
With 1:15 left, Michael Porter jr. equalized with an incredible triple (95–95), to which Russell answered with a double with only 63 seconds left. Recontra on the counter: Murray with two good penalties 97–97 with 57.1 seconds to go. James double Murray double (99–99), LeBron misses the three, Porter pulls down the rebound, the Nuggets have 12 seconds for the decisive blow. Murray scampers to the right, Davis flies towards him to block the throw, the ball is already in the air, when the horn sounds, we step into another dimension where time slows down. The ball flies, flies, the 18,000 spectators of the Ball Arena are on their feet, and at this moment only the swish! can be heard in the dead silence as Spalding falls boneless into the ring.
Madness breaks out in the hall, 101–The Nuggets won by 99 from a 20-point deficit and lead 2:0 in the match that lasted four wins. Jokics once again made history: he spent 41 minutes on the court and had a huge triple-double (27 points, 20 rebounds, 10 assists, 7/7 from penalties). And the lesson: no matter how well the Lakers play, no matter how big the lead, this Denver can’t be broken.
NBA Playoffs Round 1
East
New York Knicks–Philadelphia 76ers 104– 101. Best shooters: Brunson 24, Hart 21 (15 rebounds), DiVincenzo 19, Hartenstein 14, Anunoby 10, respectively. Maxey 35 n (9 rebounds, 10 assists), Embiid 24 (10 rebounds, 6 assists), T. Harris 10.
The score is 2:0.
Cleveland Cavaliers-Orlando Magic 96-86. Ld.: Mitchell 23, Mobley 16, Allen 16 (20 rebounds, 3 blocks), Garland 15, Okoro 10, respectively. Banchero 21, F. Wagner 18, G. Harris 14, M. Wagner 12.
The score is 2:0.
Denver Nuggets-Los Angeles Lakers 101-99. See: Jokics 27 points (20 rebounds, 10 assists), Porter jr. 22, Murray 20, A. Gordon 14, Braun 10, or Davis 32 (11 rebounds), James 26 (8 rebounds, 12 assists), Russell 23.
The score: 2:0 in favor of the Nuggets.
