There will be no Knicks coronation in New York this week.
Like they did in Games 1 and 2, the San Antonio Spurs opened a double-digit first-quarter lead over the New York Knicks on Monday night. But this time, it portended a victory.
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The Spurs built then blew a 33-21 advantage to a Knicks team that’s repeatedly bounced back this postseason from early deficits. But the Spurs threw their own counterpunch in the third quarter and held off a late Knicks rally in the final minutes of a 115-111 Game 3 win in the NBA Finals.
With the victory, the Spurs ended the Knicks’ 13 game playoff winning streak. And they cut New York’s series advantage to 2-1 in front of a rabid Madison Square Garden crowd that took its collective seats Monday night with dreams of witnessing the third game of a four-game championship sweep.
Instead, the series is now guaranteed to head back to San Antonio for a Game 5. And San Antonio’s climb from a 2-0 deficit on its home court is considerably less daunting.
Wemby outplays KAT with best effort of the Finals
In a testy game with multiple hard fouls, the Spurs weathered the relentless Knicks storm that produced 42 points in the second quarter. It was San Antonio’s defense, anchored by Victor Wembanyama, that took over after halftime to pace the Spurs’ victory. The Knicks mustered just 47 total points after halftime as the Spurs overcame a 64-57 deficit at the break.
(Al Bello via Getty Images)
And Wembanyama, fresh off a Finals blunder that has the chance to overshadow his otherwise sensational fledgling career, brushed off the Game 2 mistake to lead the San Antonio attack. Wembanyama finished with 32 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals in his best game of the Finals. He shot 11 of 18 from the floor and 2 of 4 from 3.
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And he got the best of Karl-Anthony Towns, who had outplayed him in the first two games of the series. Towns finished Monday’s game with 11 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks in a balanced effort, but one of his quietest of the postseason. And he lacked the aggression on offense that he carried throughout Games 1 and 2 in San Antonio.
“Less mistakes, more control” Wembanyama told ESPN postgame when asked what the difference was in San Antonio’s Game 3 execution from its Game 2 loss Friday night. “It’s the little things. We were more serious. Less mistakes. Less turnovers. It’s a whole.”
Late Knicks rally falls short
The Knicks didn’t go down late without a fight. They looked cooked when Stephon Castle hit a desperation 3 to beat the shot clock for a 111-104 Spurs lead in the final two minutes.
The Knicks answered with a quick 3 from Clutch Player of the Year Jalen Brunson that former CPOY De’Aaron Fox countered with a floater to extend San Antonio’s lead back to two possessions with 12.2 seconds remaining.
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OG Anunoby then dialed up another Knicks counter with a 3 to cut the San Antonio lead to 113-111 with 9.4 seconds remaining.
But Castle iced the game with pressure free throws on the other end to secure the game’s final margin.
The late 3 and clutch free throws capped a sensational effort from Castle, who finished with 23 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 1 block while shooting 8 of 14 from the floor.
Brunson led the Knicks with 32 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, but committed 5 turnovers and shot 11 of 25 from the field. Anunoby posted 28 points, 5 rebounds and 2 blocks while shooting 9 of 13 in the best effort by a Knicks player. Josh Hart shot 4 of 7 from 3 for 16 points.
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Redemption for Wemby and Castle
For Wembanyama and Castle, who was the intended recipient of Game 2’s fateful, errant pass, it added up to a measure of redemption to keep the Spurs hopes of an NBA championship afloat.
Both can take pride in looking at the box score and seeing just eight Spurs turnovers for the night against 13 from the Knicks.
That turnover margin proved critical on a night in which the Knicks won the rebounding battle, 46-37, and neither team secured a measurable shooting advantage (Knicks: 45.5% from the field, 35.1% from 3; Spurs: 46.4% from the field; 35.3% from 3).
The Spurs, instead, won the game thanks in large part to their defense and crisp ball handling that produced 28 assists on 39 made field goals. They also produced a marginal advantage at the free-throw line (25 of 32) against a Knicks team that shot 18 of 22.
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The free-throw disparity was enough for Knicks head coach Mike Brown to lean on officials in his postgame news conference.
“Twenty-four free-throw attempts in the second half to another team’s eight,” Brown said in his news conference. “I don’t think I complain much about officials or the fairness when it comes to the other team’s free-throw attempts. … Maybe we were fouling. But they fouled too.”
Regardless, the Spurs were the better team in the second half and for 48 minutes Monday night. And because of that they’ll have a chance to send the series back to San Antonio tied at 2-2.
Live coverage is over50 updates
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 8:35 PM PDT
Ryan Young
The Knicks, who lost their first game since mid-April tonight, will host the Spurs again on Wednesday.
Game 4: Knicks vs. Spurs
When: Wednesday, July 10 | 8:30 p.m. ET
Where: Madison Square Garden
TV: ABC
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 8:34 PM PDT
Ryan Young
Victor Wembanyama led the Spurs with 32 points in the win after shooting 11-of-18 from the field. He had eight rebounds and six assists, too.
Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 32 points.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 8:25 PM PDT
Ryan Young
Well, nevermind. OG Anunoby just hit a corner 3 over Dylan Harper, and we’ve got a two-point game once again.
Spurs lead with 9.4 seconds left.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 8:24 PM PDT
Ryan Young
Jalen Brunson hit a 3-pointer for the Knicks, but De’Aaron Fox answered with a stepback bucket of his own on the other end. We’re just about done here.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 8:20 PM PDT
Ryan Young
Stephon Castle! That was so big for the Spurs, who looked like they wasted the possession after KAT shut Wemby down at the top of the key. Instead, Castle’s deep, contested 3-pointer has pushed the lead to seven with less than two minutes to go.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 8:09 PM PDT
Ryan Young
The Knicks are trying to hang in there, but it’s getting a little sloppy. Jalen Brunson just lost the ball to set up another Spurs fast break, which led to a pair of Wemby free throws on the other end.
The Spurs lead by 8 with 4:50 to go, and the Knicks have just nine total points this quarter.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 7:57 PM PDT
Ryan Young
Victor Wembanyama drilled a huge 3-pointer, but it was wiped off after a challenge determined Mitchell Robinson was pushed into him. That’s a huge change that keeps this game in single digits.
The Spurs lead by 7 with less than 8 minutes to go.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 7:48 PM PDT
Ryan Young
The Spurs are holding out in front in the early minutes of the fourth now, and threw down an easy oop to Wembanyama almost instantly.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 7:39 PM PDT
Ryan Young
The Knicks ended the period on an 8-3 run of their own, after back-to-back huge 3-pointers, but Dylan Harper broke it up with a 3 of his own.
It’s a one-point game as we go to the fourth.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 7:33 PM PDT
Ryan Young
The Spurs pushed this to a 12-5 run before calling a timeout just now, and their lead is three. This game is far from over.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 7:27 PM PDT
Ryan Young
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 7:24 PM PDT
Ryan Young
The Knicks are holding onto their lead just barely as we approach the midway point of the third after this Josh Hart bucket from the corner.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 7:19 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 6:53 PM PDT
Just like they’ve done throughout the playoffs, the Knicks have punched back and will take a 67-54 lead into the break after trailing by 12 early. They ended the second quarter on a 10-2 run, and Josh Hart has gotten hot from deep, hitting 3 of 4 3s for 13 first-half points.
And he’s New York’s third-leading scorer. OG Anunoby has 17 points, and Jalen Brunson has 15.
Stephon Castle leads the Spurs with 18 points, and Victor Wembanyama has 15 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks. But after taking control early, the Spurs have let the Knicks and the Madison Square Garden seize momentum.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 6:49 PM PDT
Knicks fans are riled up. The ABC broadcast having a hard time masking the “F*** you Wemby” chants coming down from the stands.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 6:46 PM PDT
Officials convened to consider calling this a flagrant foul on Stephon Castle after he barreled into Jalen Brunson as Brunson sought to draw a charge. They decided not to. Tensions are high, and so is the physicality as these teams face each other for a third time in this series.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 6:44 PM PDT
Jalen Brunson hit a 3 to give the Knicks their first lead at 50-49 after trailing by 12 early. Victor Wembanyama answered 3 on the other end.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 6:29 PM PDT
We’ve seen this script before. The Knicks are off to a 16-7 start in the second quarter and have cut an 11-point deficit to 40-38. Karl-Anthony Towns just bullied his way into the paint for a bucket, and OG Anunoby followed up with a transition 3 off a Spurs turnover.
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 6:16 PM PDT
The Spurs controlled the first quarter and go into the break in action with a 33-22 lead.
Victor Wembnyama has 9 points, 3 rebounds and 2 blocks and is doing most of his damage near the basket — as are his teammates.
It’s an ideal start for a Spurs team coming into the buzzsaw that is Madison Square Garden. Did the Knicks get caught up in the emotion of the Game 3 buzz?
The Knicks have seen this before, though, and rallied from a poor first quarter to beat the Spurs. How will they respond in the second?
Mon, June 8, 2026 at 6:10 PM PDT
Victor Wembanyma didn’t get a personal foul, much less a flagrant foul for this shove of Jalen Brunson to the floor.