KAT Eats, JB Closes, Knicks Win

Game 3 was the biggest gut check of the season, by far, for these Knicks.

Final Score: Knicks 118- Pistons 116
Series: 2-1

That's more like it.

After fumbling away Game 2, Jalen Brunson and his Knicks promised to play faster and smarter and get their big man more involved in Game 3.

They did just that and, in the process, regained home-court advantage in this slugfest of a series.

Yeah, you guys aren't gonna believe this, but it turns out that making sure the best-shooting big man of all time gets the ball a bunch and takes a lot of shots helps your team score plenty of points.

Karl-Anthony Towns' lack of offensive involvement in New York's loss to Detroit Monday night at MSG had become a primary talking point over the past few days, and it was clear, from the opening tip, that KAT was intent on making a statement.

An uber-aggressive Towns caught fire in the first quarter, pouring in 11 points in the game's first eight minutes. KAT would finish the contest with a game-high 31 points (10-of-18 FGs, 7-of-7 FTs), eight rebounds, one assist, one steal, two blocks and four three-pointers.

As we detailed in Tuesday's recap, coach Tom Thibodeau and Brunson needed to make a concerted effort to feed their KAT.

In Game 2's loss, Towns had only:
36 total touches,
24 front-court touches,
NY scored 94 points

In Game 3,
Karl-Anthony Towns had:
60 total touches,
42 front-court touches,
NY scored 118 points

Instead of shying away from KAT's matchup with Tobias Harris, the Knicks attacked it, and the revised strategy proved pivotal. After averaging 20 PPG over the first two games of the series, Harris found himself in foul trouble Thursday night and finished the contest with just five points on 2-of-9 shooting.

Josh Hart did a good job finding Towns in delayed transition early on, which was clearly part of the Knicks' game plan. KAT nailed three treys as a trailer in the first quarter.

"In transition, KAT is someone I'm definitely trying to look for and find while he's flowing into the half court, where he can knock down shots trailing or able to attack," Hart said after the game. "You want to get him the ball and work through him," Hart added. "It's something we have to continue to do. He was great for us today. He demanded the ball, and he shot the ball confidently."

And, most importantly, NY's point guard made sure his big man ate early and often. Brunson passed to Towns 14 times last night (more than Games 1 and 2 combined!) and JB assisted on 4 of KAT's 10 made FGs. That's a recipe for success.

"I got opportunities to do things on the offensive end," Towns told reporters. "We found a way in transition to get me some good looks, and I was able to capitalize on that and start the night off. Shoutout to Jalen, Josh. They found me in the flow of the offense, and I was able to capitalize on those opportunities."

It's also important to note that although Towns made some poor defensive decisions, leading to some easy Pistons buckets, he made several massive stops late in the game.

This block on Harris was huge.

And the following sequence was arguably the biggest play of the game. After making OG touch earth, it looked like Cade Cunningham was cruising in for a layup. But KAT went straight up, maintaining his verticality. For some reason, KAT wasn't credited with a block on this play, but he grabbed the rebound and immediately passed to OG, who gave it to Brunson, who took it all the way for a back-breaking bucket.

That's a four-point swing in the final 90 seconds of a one-possession game.

Of course, it should come as no surprise that The Captain took over down the stretch. In his first game after being named the NBA's Clutch Player of the Year on Wednesday, Brunson scored 12 of his 30 points in the final eight minutes of regulation.

After leading the NBA in Clutch points last postseason and clutch FGs during the 2024-25 regular season, Brunson is at it again. He has a league-leading 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting in crunch time vs. Detroit.

JB is averaging 33.7 points vs. Detroit, the highest scoring average in the NBA thus far this postseason. He is just the second Knick to score 30+ points in each of the first three games of a playoff series, joining Bernard King during his record-setting performance vs. these same Pistons in 1984.

Game 3 was the biggest gut check of the season, by far, for these Knicks. Speaking with reporters before the contest, Hart aptly declared, "After a loss, you see the true character of a team."

And while Thursday's victory was by no means flawless, the Knicks' two All-Stars ensured New York escaped with a win.

Other Takeaways and Knicks Notes:

🏀 KAT and Brunson are the first pair of Knicks teammates to each score 30+ points in a playoff game since Allan Houston and Latrell Sprewell in NY's victory over Atlanta in Game 1 of the 1999 ECF Semis (which was the last time New York advanced to the Finals).