The New York Knicks managed to thwart the San Antonio Spurs’ fourth-quarter rally, taking a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals on Friday, June 5.
The game saw both teams hold leads as large as 12 points. The Knicks trailed the Spurs 34-25 at the end of the first quarter and did not see their first lead of the game until the final minutes of the second quarter.
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New York went back to the locker room at halftime with a 56-52 lead after outsourcing San Antonio 31-18 in the second quarter and carried its momentum into the third quarter.
The Knicks led the Spurs 84-75 after three quarters … before the game’s final quarter helped the contest live up to the standard set for the series.
9:35 left: Tension began to rise when De’Aaron Fox of the Spurs and Jalen Brunson of the Knicks had a stare down. Knicks assistant coach Rick Brunson, Jalen Brunson’s father, was visibly unhappy with the situation and was briefly held back by Knicks head coach Mike Brown on the bench.
9:11 left: The Spurs began to pick up the pace in the final frame, cutting the Knicks’ lead down to five after Dylan Harper made a shot under the basket. New York led San Antonio 87-82.
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2:59 left: San Antonio managed to gain some momentum late in the quarter after Dylan Harper scored under the basket to tie the game with the Knicks at 97. San Antonio went on a 14-0 scoring run to even the score.
57.3 seconds left: Victor Wembanyama had previously made a layup off an assist from Dylan Harper to give the Spurs a 103-102 lead with 57.3 seconds left in the quarter. Karl-Anthony Towns was called for his fifth foul on the play, sending Wembanyama to the line before a successful free throw attempt.
13.6 left: With the game tied at 104, Wembanyama grabbed the defensive rebound after Jalen Brunson missed a jump shot. The Defensive Player of the Year attempted to pass the ball toward point guard Stephon Castle, who wasn’t looking. Brunson then swooped in and stole the ball before colliding with Wembanyama, who was called for a foul.
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7.5 left: Brunson made just one of his two free throw attempts to give the Knicks a 105-104 lead.
0.0 left: Wembanyama had a clean look for a potential game-winner but missed the shot on the final possession as time expired. The Knicks won 105-104 and will return to New York with a 2-0 lead and a chance to sweep the series and capture their first title since 1973.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Knicks vs Spurs timeline: How New York won NBA Finals Game 2
