BBNBA: Tyrese Maxey goes nuclear in win-or-go-home victory over Knicks

Tyrese Maxey channeled his inner Reggie Miller on Tuesday night. And while the former Wildcat didn’t exactly reach the eight points in nine seconds that Miller is famous for, he put on a memorable performance in Madison Square Garden.

Let me set the scene real quick.

Maxey and the 7-seed Philadelphia 76ers came into Game 5 trailing the first-round series 3-1 to the 2-seed New York Knicks. A loss for Philly would end its season. Reigning MVP Joel Embiid continues to play injured. A lot of the pressure was placed upon Maxey’s young shoulders.

With 25 seconds left in regulation, the 76ers were down 96-90 until Maxey was fouled on a three-pointer by Mitchell Robinson. Not only did Maxey drain the triple, but he also canned the free throw to cut the Knicks’ lead down to just two. Josh Hart was fouled on the other end for New York but only made one of the two freebies. Now down just three, 97-94, Maxey wasted no time sprinting up the court, curling around an Embiid screen, and rising up for a DEEP shot (35 feet, to be exact) that hit nothing but net with only 8.1 seconds left.

Just like that, we were tied at 97-97. Jalen Brunson missed the potential game-winner right before the buzzer as he was blocked by Nicolas Batum. Overtime. Momentum all in Philadelphia’s favor.

In the extra period, the 76ers outscored New York 15-9 to steal Game 5 by a final score of 112-106. Philly is still down in the series, 3-2, but the venue shifts back to their home arena for Game 6 on Thursday night. There’s going to be a ton of pressure on the Knicks to avoid a Game 7.

Overall, Maxey finished his night with 46 points (the most-ever in franchise history during an elimination game), nine assists, five rebounds, and three turnovers while playing just a hair under 52 minutes (out of a possible 53). The NBA’s Most Improved Player shot 17-30 from the field, including a 7-12 mark from distance.

A star is being born right in front of our eyes…

Other BBNBA notes

• Despite missing Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, the Milwaukee Bucks still managed to win Game 5 against the Indiana Pacers, 115-92, making the first-round series 3-2 in favor of Indy. Isaiah Jackson saw nine minutes of action for the Pacers, totaling four points (1-2 FG) and four rebounds in the loss. Game 6 heads back to Indianapolis on Thursday night.

4/30/24 statistics

Player	Score	PTS	FG (3PT)	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	MIN
Tyrese Maxey (PHI)	112-106 (OT) W @ NYK	46	17-30 (7-12)	5	9	0	0	3	3	52
Isaiah Jackson (IND)	115-92 L @ MIL	4	1-2	4	0	0	0	0	-4	9
Julius Randle (NYK)	112-106 (OT) L vs. PHI	DNP-Shoulder	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Chris Livingston (MIL)	115-92 W vs. IND	DNP-CD	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Tonight in the NBA Playoffs

Round 1 | Game 5 | BOS leads 3-1
7:30 (TNT): [8] Heat (Adebayo, Herro) @ [1] Celtics

Round 1 | Game 5 | Tied 2-2
10:00 (TNT): [5] Mavericks (Washington) @ [4] Clippers (Boston)