New York Knicks Win First NBA Title Since 1973 After Branson's 45-Point Masterpiece

The New York Knicks captured their third NBA championship and first since 1973 with a 94-90 road win over San Antonio in Game 5 of the Finals, ending 53 years of waiting in dramatic fashion. The victory came after yet another massive comeback, with Jalen Branson scoring 45 points in one of the great Finals performances, and later being named Finals MVP.

New York trailed by 16 in the second quarter and by 10 in the fourth, but kept finding a way back, just as it had throughout the series. In Game 4, the Knicks had erased a 29-point deficit to win at the buzzer, and in this game they again overcame a deep hole while tens of thousands gathered across New York City to watch and celebrate.

The Knicks struggled badly early, scoring only 13 points in the first quarter and getting their first paint basket late in the second. Karl-Anthony Towns was largely ineffective because of foul trouble, finishing with two points on 1-for-7 shooting. Still, Branson carried New York, while Mikal Bridges added 14 points, Josh Hart had 13 and O.G. Anunoby scored 11. Knicks reserves combined for only nine points.

San Antonio, coached by Mitch Johnson, came into Game 5 desperate to avoid elimination and force a sixth game. The Spurs defended hard and led 23-13 after the first quarter and 42-37 at halftime, before Victor Wembanyama and other young players helped push the margin back to double digits. But the home team again faded late, unable to close out the series. Branson's title-clinching effort goes into the record books as the performance that brought the championship back to New York for the first time in more than five decades.