You can never count this group of Knicks out — no matter how deep the hole, no matter how daunting the deficit.
Friday in Memphis? They trailed by 12 in the third quarter, didn’t take their first lead until midway through the fourth, then closed the game on OG Anunoby’s game-winning three and two clutch stops from Mikal Bridges.
Sunday in South Beach? A similar story.
The Knicks faced a Miami Heat squad that had just traded away its best player, All-Star forward Jimmy Butler. Yet it was Miami that came out swinging, burying a barrage of early threes to build a double-digit lead in the first quarter — one that ballooned to 19 late in the first half.
But if there’s one thing Miami leads the NBA in this season, it’s an obscure category: blown double-digit leads.
And if there’s one thing the Knicks have thrived in this season, it’s closing games in crunch time.
That combination proved lethal for Miami, as New York erased yet another massive deficit, storming back in the second half to steal a 116-112 overtime victory — New York’s 40th win of the season.
The win marked the Knicks’ 10th consecutive victory in a game that reached crunch time — defined as the final five minutes of a game within five points. They also improved to 13-3 in games that have been within two points with two minutes to go.
They beat the Grizzlies by one on Friday. The 76ers by five on Wednesday. The Hawks and Bulls in overtime thrillers decided by a single possession.
And Jalen Brunson — the frontrunner for NBA Clutch Player of the Year — was at the center of it all once again.
The Knicks’ captain delivered another late-game masterpiece, finishing with a game-high 31 points on 13-of-25 shooting after entering halftime with just five points under Miami’s relentless defensive pressure.
“I’m gonna find a way to help this team win. It doesn’t matter,” Brunson said in his walk-off interview. “We’ve gotta come out and play Knicks basketball. We’ve gotta fight. We didn’t do that in the first half. They got the best of us.”
Brunson credited a fiery halftime speech from head coach Tom Thibodeau for lighting a spark under the team.
“We know what we’re capable of as a team, and Thibs knows that. He just had to remind us,” he said. “When we take a slow start, obviously we’ve gotta come back with some fire. We decided to do that a little late, but we came out of it with a win.”
Of course, the win didn’t come without drama.
The Knicks had no answer for Bam Adebayo, who torched them for 30 points on 12-of-14 shooting in one of his most efficient performances of the season.
Nor did they have much success scoring inside against rookie big man Kel’el Ware, who swatted six shots and anchored a Miami defense that kept New York from generating easy looks at the rim.
Yet, for the second game in a row, the Knicks’ bench held its own — a promising sign for a second unit that has ranked dead last in scoring this season.
And once again, Miles McBride was the momentum-shifter, delivering timely plays on both ends of the floor.
New York outscored Miami by 13 points in McBride’s 30 minutes, and he finished with 12 points and two assists while shooting 3-of-7 from downtown.
And when the Knicks finally took their first lead in regulation, it was McBride who delivered the moment — a pull-up jumper over Heat All-Star Tyler Herro with just over three minutes left in the fourth.
Anunoby followed up his game-winner in Memphis with another clutch performance.
He held Herro to 22 points on 8-of-24 shooting, made a key tip-in late in regulation, and stuffed the stat sheet with 23 points, nine rebounds, five assists, three blocks, and two steals.
Karl-Anthony Towns was dominant on the glass, finishing with 19 points and 16 rebounds, while Josh Hart chipped in 14 points, seven boards, and three assists.
The Knicks return to Madison Square Garden on Thursday for a showdown with the Golden State Warriors before embarking on a five-game West Coast road trip.
Given how this team has fought back all season long, don’t expect them to back down from whatever challenges await.
