A day later, it’s impossible to walk away from any of it. That’s when you know you’ve seen a game that’ll stick with you a while. Game 2, Knicks-Sixers, had just about anything you could want.
There were Philly’s wounded bookends — flu-wracked Tyrese Maxey, knee-wrecked Joel Embiid — combing for 69 points. There was slumping Jalen Brunson, channeling Francisco Lindor’s first two weeks, clanking shots, ultimately rescued by teammates he’s long carried on his shoulders.
And the ending. Of course, the ending. For a game to matter as much as this one will, it has to close in a way that’s equal parts sports movie and horror flick. Madison Square Garden has seen its share since the building opened in 1968. Here are 20 to put on that shelf forever, ranked in order — 11 Knicks wins, nine Knicks losses:
1. June 5, 1999: Knicks 92, Pacers 91. Known for all times as “The LJ Game.” Larry Johnson knocks down a 3, and is fouled by Antonio Davis, with five seconds to play, Game 3, East finals. Veteran Garden denizens swear that’s the loudest the joint has ever been (I was there; I concur). LJ made the free throw, and the Knicks survived a 10-footer by Mark Jackson that somehow stayed out. The Garden Gold Standard.
2. April 22, 1973: Knicks 117, Celtics 110 (2OT). Easter Sunday. Bill Bradley calls it “The Wildest Game I ever played in.” The Knicks trail by 16 in the fourth. Clyde Frazier ties it at 89 with 17 seconds left, Phil Jackson hit two free throws with 11 seconds left in OT, then John Gianelli, of all people, plays the best five minutes of his life to seal it.
3. April 22, 2024: Knicks 104, 76ers 101. Maybe the Garden didn’t sound the way it did when LJ made his shot 25 years earlier. It came damned close.
4. May 7, 1995: Pacers 107, Knicks 105. Reggie Miller in full bloom. The Knicks lead 105-99 with 18.7 seconds left. Then Reggie hits a 3, steals the inbounds, buries another and then, after John Starks misses two free throws, makes two of his own. The Post the next morning: “CHOKE ARTISTS!”
5. April 29, 1989: Knicks 107, 76ers 106. Eerily similar to Monday. Another first-round Game 2 against Philly, this time the Sixers lead 106-96 with 2:12 left and never score again. Mark Jackson hits a 3 and an and-one, Gerald Wilkens nails a jumper and Trent Tucker drains a 3 with 11 seconds left.
6. June 2, 1993: Bulls 97, Knicks 94. The Charles Smith Game. The Knicks allow the Bulls to hang around thanks to 15 missed foul shots. B.J. Armstrong makes a 3 to put the Bulls up and then Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant refuse to let Smith make a layup.
7. May 18, 1994: Knicks 87, Bulls 86. In New York, it’s the Hubert Davis Game; in Chicago, the Hue Hollins Game. The Knicks trail by a point with two seconds left when Hollins whistles Pippen for a foul for grazing Davis’ hand. Davis makes both free throws.
8. June 5, 1994: Knicks 94, Pacers 90. Down 90-89, time running out, John Starks drives and misses a layup, but Patrick Ewing is there for the dunk, capping a 24-point, 22-rebound masterpiece. Reggie flings an airball seconds later and the Knicks are off to the Finals for the first time since ’73.
9. April 13, 1970: Knicks 112, Bucks 111. Down a point with 52 seconds left, Lew Alcindor misses two foul shots as the Garden loudly chants his name at full throttle, Cazzie Russell hits the game-sealer.
10. May 11, 1984: Knicks 106, Celtics 104. Bernard King strafes Boston for 44 and the Knicks nearly blow a 13-point lead with 3 ½ to go but Larry Bird misses a 12-footer at the buzzer.
11. June 1, 1994: Pacers 93, Knicks 86. The Knicks lead 70-58 entering the fourth and then Miller outscores them 25-16, hitting from all over the gym, flashing a choke sign at Spike Lee.
12. May 21, 1995: Pacers 97, Knicks 95. The Finger Roll Game. The Knicks scramble from 12 down in the fourth, then Ewing, hampered by a sore calf, can’t get enough lift to force OT in Game 7.
13. May 17, 1995: Knicks 96, Pacers 95. Four night earlier, Byron Scott’s late 3 puts the Knicks on the brink of elimination when an almost identical Ewing drive at the last second rescues the Knicks.
14. April 19, 1971: Bullets 93, Knicks 91. The Knicks’ first championship reign ends in Game 7 of the East finals when Wes Unseld blocks Bill Bradley’s would-be game-tying corner jumper at the buzzer.
15. April 7, 1974: Knicks 106, Bullets 105. The last-gasp hurrah of the championship teams, Clyde scoring a playoff career-high 38. He is responsible for the Knicks’ final 18 points on seven baskets and two assists.
16. June 25, 1999: Spurs 78, Knicks 77. The Finals dream expires when Latrell Sprewell’s 5-footer at the buzzer falls short at the end of Game 5.
17. April 26, 2000: Knicks 84, Raptors 83. With the Ewing Era on fumes, the Knicks overcome a seven-point deficit with less than five to go, winning on a Sprewell jumper with seven seconds left.
18. May 12, 2000: Heat 77, Knicks 76. Ewing makes a shot at the end of regulation to force OT, then a free throw late in OT, but Miami survives when Anthony Carter makes a shot with two seconds left.
19. April 27, 1970: Lakers 105, Knicks 103. The Lakers surprise the Knicks with a fourth-quarter rally in Game 2 of the Finals when Wilt Chamberlain blocks shots by Mike Riordan and Willis Reed in the final seconds.
20. May 23, 2021: Hawks 107, Knicks 105. Trae Young hits the game-winner with less than a second left, and he hasn’t heard the end of it yet.
