yahoo - 5/7/2026 4:31:25 AM - GMT (+2 )
NEW YORK — It’s the second quarter, and Karl-Anthony Towns is perched on his padded seat at the end of the New York Knicks' bench. He’s hunched over, staring at the floor. He’s shaking his head now, burying it in a towel. He mutters to himself.
It’s the second quarter and Towns is in foul trouble.
***
Towns is back. It’s the third quarter now, and he hasn’t missed a shot. He has embraced his new role as point-center, a role that has helped the Knicks become the most dangerous team in the East. Towns has been slashing to the rim, zipping passes to his teammates when the defense collapses on him. He has been lacing trail 3s.
But Towns picked up his fourth foul, so he’s back at the end of the bench, towel in hand, shaking his head.
***
It’s very late in the fourth quarter, and Towns is checking out of the game for the last time. Coated in sweat, he’s extending his hand out to courtside fans. He stops to dap up coach Mike Brown. He heads to the end of the bench and hugs Jose Alvarado.
After just missing out on what would’ve been his third triple-double of the playoffs, Towns and the Knicks scrapped their way to an uneven 108-102 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday, May 6. Now with a 2-0 lead in the conference semifinals, this game proved two things:
- No team in the world has been playing better basketball than the New York Knicks.
- The only team that can stop the New York Knicks in the East is the New York Knicks.
Entering Wednesday night, they had won their previous four playoff games by 135 points, most ever in NBA postseason history. They also became the first team in NBA history to win three consecutive playoff games by at least 25 points.
They have continuity and balance. They have a trio of demons in OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart, the architects of the best perimeter defense in the East. They can ignite on offense with Towns and Jalen Brunson.
But New York falls into foul trouble frequently. There are times, particularly late in close games, when the ball can stagnate on offense in the hands of Brunson.
This is all to say that, right now, the Knicks are the team to beat in the East. What’s more: this New York squad is the best this city has seen in a quarter century and its best bet to break a 52-year title drought. But to do that, the Knicks need to avoid the self-imposed mistakes, the avalanche of undisciplined fouls.
By the 5:47 mark in the second quarter Wednesday night, the Knicks had already committed 5 team fouls to put Philadelphia in the bonus; the Sixers, at that point, hadn’t committed a single infraction.
Yet, despite the disparity of free throws, New York entered halftime down by only one point.
In the second half, the Knicks responded and played smarter. They didn’t fall for the bait and adapted to the style of officiating, avoiding careless swipes at the ball. More importantly, they settled into their regular offensive rhythm.
Towns finished the game with an ultra-efficient 20 points on 6-of-8 shooting and nearly recorded his third triple-double of the postseason, adding 10 rebounds and 7 assists.
Brunson led all New York players with a steady 26 points. Anunoby added 24.
Now, this series flips Philadelphia, where the 76ers may get the return of star center Joel Embiid. For New York to close Philadelphia out, it will need its players to be available and on the floor and it will need to stick to its identity.
Because as currently constructed, there’s no other squad right now out East that can threaten this team.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Knicks, leading 76ers 2-0, are clearly best team in Eastern Conference
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