The Knicks delivered a historic beatdown in a clinching victory for a second straight series.
Seemingly firing on all cylinders, New York smacked around the hapless 76ers with 25 3-pointers, tying an NBA playoff record, to win game four 144-114 and take the series in a four-game sweep. The win came after dismantling the Hawks in a clinching game six with a 51-point blowout win.
To make things more embarrassing for the Sixers, the drubbing came in their own building, with loads of Knicks fans on hand to celebrate in Philly's own backyard.
Despite the storyline before the series being dominated by the 76ers' attempt to keep Knicks fans out of their arena, game four was overwhelmingly dominated by fans of the road team, to the point where Joel Embiid heard loud boos while at the free throw line, and droves of fans held up photos of Mitchell Robinson posterizing Embiid back in game three.
By the second half, the stands looked like it was nearly all Knicks fans, who broke out the brooms and partied outside Xfinity Mobile Arena after clinching a second straight Eastern Conference Final berth.
Players clearly took notice.
"Everybody was begging for fans not to sell their tickets," Josh Hart said. "It never felt like a road game. I used to think Philly was a sports town. I don't know if it is anymore."
Embiid begged fans to show up before the series started, but the home team could not ignore the scene in game four, which felt like a home game for the enemy.
"It absolutely sucks, if I'm being honest. It just sucks," Tyrese Maxey said. "That's really all I can say about it, man...It's only one way to put a stop to it and it's, we have to go out there and win these games. Just being completely honest, we were better when we played them in the Garden this entire season. I know we lost Game 2 and 1, but Game 2 was better. The regular season was better. I was telling them, it felt louder here for them than it did in the Garden."
Whether they played in New York or Philly, the Knicks had little issue pushing aside the Sixers, dominating in game one to set the tone for a lopsided series, capped by a 30-plus point win in a clinching game for a second straight series. Only the 2025 Thunder, the 2008 Celtics, and the 1987 Lakers have accomplished the same in a single postseason.
Loads of Knicks fans were on hand to see a dominant clinching victory to cap off a series sweep.
Loads of Knicks fans were on hand to see a dominant clinching victory to cap off a series sweep.
