State Game 33 Notes
The Knicks lost a close one, 132-134, despite Jalen Brunson’s Player of the Game performance. He kept New York in it, but Julian Champagnie’s 36 points and 11 3-pointers sealed the Spurs’ win.
The New York Knicks got smoked, falling 134-132 to the San Antonio Spurs as Julian Champagnie exploded for a career high 36 points and set a franchise record with 11 3-pointers. Wembanyama added 31 points and 13 rebounds in just 24 minutes before leaving with an apparent leg injury with under 11 minutes remaining. Champagnie scored 12 points in the fourth, going 4-for-5 from deep to erase a double-digit deficit, finishing 11-for-17 overall and breaking Chuck Person’s 1997 record of nine 3s. His back-to-back triples capped a 16-2 run that tied the game at 86 midway through the third. Wembanyama also became the fastest 7-footer to make 300 career 3-pointers in just 138 games. For the Knicks, KAT struggled defensively, and Fox and Castle combined for 14 assists, underscoring the team’s difficulties containing the Spurs’ offensive onslaught.
Player of the Game: Jalen Brunson
Jalen Brunson finished versus the Spurs with 29 points on 10 of 24 shooting including 5 of 12 from three-point range, 4 of 5 from the free-throw line while drawing three fouls, eight assists, one turnover, four rebounds including two offensive, two steals, nine fast-break points, and 35.7 minutes. By quarter he had 11 points and 2 assists in the first, 2 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 assist in the second, 8 points and 4 assists in the third, and 8 points with 1 rebound and 1 assist in the fourth.
His key plays included orchestrating the offense from the opening minutes. At 10:17 in the first quarter he assisted Diawara on a three-point jump shot to make it 7-3 and at 9:52 he set up Diawara again for a catch-and-shoot three to extend the lead to 10-3. At 5:01 in the first quarter he hit a catch-and-shoot three himself assisted by Deuce McBride to put the Knicks ahead 19-18 and followed it with a floater at 4:37 to make it 21-18. In the third quarter, at 2:02 he assisted Clarkson on a basket to make it 94-93, then hit a step-in three at 0:33 to give New York a 99-93 lead and a step-back three at 0:02 to make it 102-93. In the fourth quarter, he made a mid-range jumper at 7:08 assisted by Mikal Bridges to make it 112-105, set up Clarkson for a catch-and-shoot three at 5:53 to make it 116-109, and finally hit a step-back three at 0:26 late in the game. Brunson’s scoring and playmaking kept the Knicks competitive throughout, even though they ultimately fell just short.
Game Notes:
In the first quarter, OG Anunoby started guarding Wembanyama, who hit a mid-range jumper at 12:00 to make it 2-0. Mikal Bridges was perfect early, hitting his first two mid-range attempts. Mohamed Diarra impressed defensively on a switch against Wembanyama, while Jalen Brunson found Mohamed for a three at 10:17 to make it 7-3. Mohamed then assisted Mikal on a three at 10:17 to extend the lead to 13-7. Fox responded with back-to-back baskets to tie it at 13-13, and Brunson missed a shot shortly after. KAT was beaten on a pick-and-roll by Kornet for an alley-oop dunk, then Champagnie hit a three to make it 16-15. KAT answered with a three at 7:00 to make it 18-16, and then a swing pass from KAT to Deuce to Brunson led to another three at 5:01, giving the Knicks a 19-18 lead. Brunson added a transition bucket at 4:33 to make it 21-18. KAT hit a long three as part of an 11-0 run, and Brunson’s pick-and-roll with Ariel Hukporti added more points. Kevin McCullar’s defense caused a tie-up, and he later hit a three to make it 38-31. KAT passed to Kolek for a three at 2:00 left in the quarter to bring the Spurs back, but the Knicks responded with a fast lead pass from Kevin McCullar to Ariel for a bucket after Fox scored, ending the quarter with New York scoring 40 points for the 14th time this season.
In the second quarter, Fox missed a jumper early, but KAT made a cut to the basket at 11:36 with Kolek finding him for an and-one bucket to make it 48-36. OG blocked Wembanyama on a contested shot, and Fox hit a three over Mikal to keep San Antonio close. Kolek assisted Clarkson for a three at 8:20 to make it 51-40, and OG made another defensive stop on Wembanyama. Champagnie hit a wide-open three at 7:45 to bring the Spurs closer, while KAT was fouled for three. Wembanyama turned it over at 7:04, and the Knicks got a pair of three-pointers to keep momentum. Castle lobbed to Wembanyama for a dunk at 6:45 and later again at 6:30. Kolek forced another turnover at 7:04, and Towns hit a pass to Bridges for a three at 5:50. Harper scored on a spin move over Kolek to make it 57-52, and Towns continued scoring via free throws and assists. OG converted a dunk off a pass from Towns to make it 60-52. Castle missed again, leading to an OG dunk and an assist to Kolek, giving him four assists in seven minutes. Brunson hit a floater after another Castle miss to make it 64-52, and Brunson later assisted Clarkson for a bucket at 2:30 to make it 66-52. Ariel’s weak-side help caused a Spurs turnover leading to Clarkson hitting a three from Mikal’s assist to push the lead to 69-52. Clarkson’s fall-away jumper at 1:45 in the half made it 71-52. Fox scored a step-back jumper, and Kevin McCullar returned with 3:08 left, stealing the ball and finding Ariel for a dunk at 73-54. Wembanyama responded with a three at 57-73, and Deuce’s defense caused a tie-up, ending the second quarter with the Knicks leading 73-62 and Wembanyama finishing with 21 points in the first half.
In the third quarter, Mohamed took over guarding Wembanyama but Brown subbbed out Mohamed early for Deuce. Barnes scored a bucket over KAT at 11:50 to make it 65-73, and KAT hit an and-one over Wembanyama off a pump fake to bring the Knicks lead to 76-65. Fox made a crafty layup, and Deuce McBride hit a three to extend New York’s lead. Wembanyama answered with a bucket at 10:22, and Deuce added a pull-up mid-range jumper at 9:58 to make it 81-69. Castle made free throws to keep the Spurs close, and Deuce connected on another three off a Brunson assist at 8:12 to make it 84-70. Wembanyama scored inside at 7:55, and KAT hit another basket to bring it to 86-72. Pennie hit a three at 7:30, and Castle scored again at 7:10 to make it 77-86. Wembanyama was fouled for three at 6:50. The Spurs went on an 11-0 run capped by a three at 5:57, tying the game at 86. OG turned it over, and Pennie hit another three at 5:45 to tie the game at 91. Bridges’ corner three at 5:57 gave the Knicks a brief 89-86 lead. Wembanyama scored off a pin-down screen at 5:30 to make it 88-89, and Brunson caused an offensive foul on Castle. Yabusele scored a layup at 5:00 to tie it 91-91, followed by another Pennie three. Brunson, Clarkson, Ariel, Yabusele, and Deuce rotated on offense, but the Spurs scored to make it 93-91. Clarkson hit another three at 4:30 to make it 94-93, while Yabusele passed up a wide-open three. Ariel Huk grabbed a rebound but Clarkson blocked him, and Brunson hit free throws at 0:15 to make it 96-93. He then hit a three at the buzzer of the third to give the Knicks a 102-93 lead.
In the fourth quarter, the Knicks, who are 19-0 when leading after three quarters, saw the Spurs start a comeback. Fox stole the ball and converted a dunk at 11:00 to make it 102-95. Mikal’s defense caused a Clarkson basket at 10:22 to make it 96-104, while Kolek’s advance pass set up Clarkson for another bucket at 9:45, making it 106-96. Keldon Johnson scored a layup at 9:30, and Towns passed to Bridges for a basket at 9:05 to make it 108-98. Kolek found OG for a driving dunk at 8:50, and Julian Champagnie hit a three at 8:30 to make it 110-102, followed by another step-in three at 8:10 to give the Spurs 110-105. OG drove for a dunk at 6:30 but was fouled, making it 112-107. Fox added another bucket, and Clarkson hit a three at 5:53 to make it 116-109 as the Knicks reached 18 made threes. Champagnie’s next three made it 116-113, followed by another three from Pennie at 116-116. Fox scored again to give the Spurs a 118-116 lead, then KAT scored to make it 120-118. Fox was fouled and made his free throws, Bridges missed a three, and a steal led to a Deuce bucket at 1:59. Towns fouled out after a Kornet and-one putback. Brunson hit a catch-and-shoot three at 0:30 to make it 126-128. The Knicks bench contributed 52 points, and McBride made free throws to make it 129-132. Kevin McCullar held the ball on the final possession, but the Spurs survived. Champagnie finished with 36 points, hitting 11 of 17 three-pointers, most of them without taking any two-point shots.
Reasons Why the Knicks Lost:
The Knicks fell short due to a combination of defensive lapses, poor matchups, and the Spurs’ historic shooting. Jalen Brunson was solid offensively, scoring 29 points and dishing out eight assists, but struggled defensively as Julian Champagnie went 3-for-5 from three against him, and Knicks players were 6-for-12 overall when guarded by Brunson. KAT was a disaster on defense, posting a minus-15 plus-minus while allowing 5-of-9 shooting on his matchups, and OG had an uneven night, giving up 4-of-9 shooting including one three, finishing with two steals, one block, but also a minus-25 and a 3-of-10 shooting line with 0-of-5 from three. Mikal Bridges also struggled, finishing minus-15 overall and minus-20 in the second half, allowing 9-of-16 shooting and failing to contain Fox, who finished 6-of-8 from the field with 1 three-pointer, seven assists, and three steals. Limited minutes for Diawara (6) and McCullar (8) hurt defensive rotations, and subbing out Diawara early in the third quarter for Deuce disrupted the Knicks’ defense.
Julian Champagnie’s shooting was historic and decisive. He tied Stephen Curry for the most three-pointers ever made versus the Knicks with 11, and also set the record for the most three-pointers made in NBA history without attempting a single two-point shot. Champagnie’s 11-of-17 performance from deep erased a double-digit deficit and capped multiple scoring runs, including a 16-2 stretch midway through the third quarter. The combination of the Spurs’ perimeter shooting, Wembanyama’s inside scoring, and the Knicks’ defensive breakdowns ultimately cost New York the game.
Knicks Defense Sucks
The Knicks’ defense specifically was alarmingly soft against the Spurs, allowing 134 points on 44/89 shooting (49.4%) and 14/38 from three (36.8%). They surrendered 50 points in the paint, and key players shot efficiently against them: Wembanyama hit 83.3% from the field, Fox shot 52.4% with 12.5% from three, and Luke Kornet made 75% of his attempts. Stephon Castle also dished out 7 assists, further exposing the team’s defensive lapses. Overall, the Knicks struggled to contest shots and control the paint, making this one of their worst defensive performances.
Despite the close score and the Knicks’ strong individual efforts, the team came up short against a hot-shooting Spurs squad. Peace and blessings, thank you for supporting another State article.