Anunoby shines as Knicks beat Spurs to win NBA Cup

OG Anunoby scored 28 points as the New York Knicks ended their 52-year trophy drought by beating the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Cup Final.

The London-born forward finished with five 3-pointers as the Knicks rallied from 11 points down in the third quarter to win 124-113 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Announcement

Point guard Jalen Brunson, named the NBA Cup Most Valuable Player, scored 25 points as the Knicks won the third midseason tournament, capturing their first trophy since winning the 1973 NBA Finals.

“We found a way to win,” Brunson said. “This will be our motto going forward: We will find a way.”

Mike Brown, who is in his first year as the Knicks’ head coach, said, “Anytime you can go to an event where you’re the last one standing and you can hang a banner, you take it seriously. And all of our guys took it seriously.”

San Antonio upset the top-seeded and defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder in Saturday’s semifinals thanks to a superb performance from Victor Wembanyama.

Announcement

In his second game, after missing 12 straight games with a calf injury, he was limited to 18 points and 25 minutes off the bench.

An emotional Wembanyama held back tears in a brief post-match press conference, saying: “I’m sorry, I just lost someone today.”

Seven Knicks players reached double figures in points. Karl-Anthony Towns had 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Mitchell Robertson had 15 rebounds and two blocks off the bench.

Dylan Harper led the scoring for the Spurs with 21 points.

The victory was the sixth in a row for the Knicks – and the 10th in 11 games – although the final does not count towards the regular season standings.

They are second in the Eastern Conference and the Spurs are fourth in the Western Conference.