Skip to content
Sixers
Link copied to clipboard

Jalen Brunson torches Sixers for Knicks playoff-record 47 points. He’s just as good at dodging praise.

Asked several times about breaking Bernard King's record, Brunson verbally dipped and ducked talk of his own achievements.

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson makes a pass during Game 4 as he is guarded by Nico Batum (40) and Paul Reed.
New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson makes a pass during Game 4 as he is guarded by Nico Batum (40) and Paul Reed.Read moreMonica Herndon / Staff Photographer

After torching the 76ers for a franchise playoff-record, 47 points, New York Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson gave media members a taste of what it must be like to guard the shifty, offensive savant.

Asked several times about his big game, Brunson verbally dodged, dipped, and ducked talk of his own achievements on Sunday.

Even when someone mentioned Knicks legend Bernard King, who held the team record with back-to-back 46-point first-round games in 1984, Brunson found a way to swing the conversation back on message.

“Didn’t know anything about [the record],” Brunson said. “Not at all.”

» READ MORE: The Knicks are better than the Sixers in every way. Oh, and New Yorkers took over the Wells Fargo Center.

Later, with a smile, he added: “Yeah, it’s pretty cool. But unless [King] comes back and helps us win next game ... I promise I’ll think about it later.”

The former Villanova guard’s performance helped the Knicks twice overcome double-digit deficits en route to a 97-92 victory Sunday afternoon at the Wells Fargo Center, securing a 3-1 series advantage in the process.

“Somehow we just found a way,” Brunson said. “We kept fighting. We kept sticking together. We found a way. When it’s ugly and we can find a way to win like that, knowing we’re not playing perfect, it’s a plus for us. It’s a plus for our confidence, but I mean, we’re not done yet. We have to continue to have that humble mentality and we have to find a way to win another.”

Brunson finished 18 of 34 overall, added 10 assists, and had only one turnover in a hard-fought, physical contest.

His effort helped the Knicks overcome a 12-point deficit in the first half and a 10-point margin in the third quarter.

Brunson’s humility might be as well-known as the herky-jerky style he cultivated at Villanova, where his coach, Jay Wright, also famously preached team-first and team-last.

These days, Brunson clearly takes his cues from Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau, who did his own two-step when asked about Brunson’s prowess.

“We’re a team and we have a team of leaders, and of course the way Jalen has responded to the challenge has been huge, but not just Jalen; everyone has embraced their role,” Thibodeau said postgame.

Josh Hart was all-around excellent, mixing 17 rebounds with four points, stingy defense, and a knack for grabbing loose balls.

OG Anunoby added 16 points and 14 rebounds, while effectively guarding Sixers center Joel Embiid in the fourth quarter when Knicks center Isaiah Hartenstein was saddled with five fouls.

» READ MORE: Dawn Staley hopes WNBA expansion leads to a franchise in Philly: ‘We’re ready’

Embiid finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, and two blocks. Tyrese Maxey added 23 points and six assists.

The Knicks defense, however, bottled up both in the fourth quarter. In fact, the Knicks didn’t allow a field goal beyond Kelly Oubre Jr.’s dunk with about five minutes left.

Brunson, who dodged several more attempts to have him talk about his accomplishment, was more talkative when it came to his teammates’ defense on Embiid.

“Obviously, Embiid is a handful,” he said. “Just for us to go out there and stick together, especially during crunch time like that, it’s a pretty remarkable feat considering what [the Sixers] are capable of doing.”

He then praised Hart, Anunoby, and others before spinning back on message.

“But we have to figure out how we can be better,” Brunson said. “I’m going to continue to say it; we have to be better if we want to close out and move on to the next round, because [the Sixers] are not going to quit fighting.”

Anunoby, who played for Sixers coach Nick Nurse as a member of the Toronto Raptors before being traded to the Knicks this season, might have perfectly summed up the experience of the Sixers and reporters.

“Jalen’s a difficult player to guard,” Anunoby said. “He has a bunch of counters. He can make shots from anywhere, so you just try to make it as hard as possible, and see what happens.”