The New York Knicks took a 2-0 lead over the Philadelphia 76ers in their second-round series with a 108-102 victory Wednesday night, but attention now turns to the health of one of their best players.
OG Anunoby, who had a strong game with 24 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 steals, could not finish the contest due to an apparent injury.
In the late proceedings, he was seen grabbing his right leg after making a cut and Knicks coach Mike Brown said postgame that Anunoby had asked to be subbed out shortly after the sequence. He was replaced with 2:31 to go in the game by Miles McBride.
OG came up gimpy on this cut. Then tried and missed a dunk. Then asked out.
May 6, 2026; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (7) steals third base during the third inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
It was an interesting game at times tonight, though often not in the good interesting way for Kansas City. Regardless of the oddities, the bats just never did very much and the winning streak ends at five.
Cole Ragans exiting the game early, which was the biggest event of the game possibly in the short and long-term. When this happened against Cleveland a few weeks ago, it was very apparent why. This time it took a couple of innings to get information. In the first three innings, Ragans only gave up 1 hit and 2 walks while striking out 4 and surrendering no runs. Next thing we knew, Luinder Avila was warming up and starting the 4th. Eventually it was announced that Ragans left with “left triceps/elbow soreness”. No idea what that means going forward, but tonight it meant the bullpen had to get through 6 innings.
While that drama was unfolding, the Royals scored a run in the bottom of the third. Bobby ended up on first after a fielder’s choice and then was moved to second when Lane Thomas walked. Witt decided he would rather be on third base, but getting there required a phenomenal slide that is unfortunately not available as an embed yet or I would be showing it to you right now. Without that the Royals don’t score, but it set up a sac fly from El Capitan to take a 1-0 lead.
Avila’s first inning went fine, but he got in trouble in his second frame. Austin Hedges was walked to leadoff. You never want to walk the guy with a .562 career OPS. Halpin then singled to set up a strange set of events. Cleveland looked like they wanted Martinez to sac bunt them to 2nd and 3rd, but on the first pitch he held back and Diaz tried to backpick Hedges at second. The throw beat him to the bag though he was called safe and the Royals challenged, you can take a look for yourself here:
I get why the call was not overturned, it probably would not have been had the original call been out either. Then Hedges and Halpin stole to move up thus any need to bunt though Martinez struck out just before anyway. Avila was not holding the runners much and it cost the Royals big. Chase DeLauter took advantage with a weak single sneaking through and rolling slow enough to score them both. Avila managed to get out of the inning after that.
Shreiber took over next and got 5 outs including one at third base when Schneemann tried to stretch a double into a triple. Lange took over for the last out in the 7th. He returned in the 8th and the Guardians added their third run of the night on another leadoff walk, this time to Jose Ramirez. If you have not been paying attention, Ramirez has stolen over 40 bags each of the last two seasons, and he took one here for his 14th already this season. He moved to third on a David Fry groundout and then scored when a hard ball to third went off Garcia. Bobby did pick it up and throw the batter out, there just wasn’t any way to keep Ramirez from scoring.
There was a debut tonight. Eric Cerantola, who was called up by the Royals this afternoon, took on the ninth inning with KC behind and not wanting to tax the back of their bullpen. We had another odd, and similar, situation to the 5th. Rocchio walked to lead off and then moved to third on an Austin Hedges single. Halpin comes up and shows bunt but does not lay one down on the first or second pitch. On said second pitch Diaz threw behind Rocchio at third and again the ball beat the runner to the bag where he was called out instead of safe this time. That call was subsequently overturned on review and Rocchio remained on third. On the next pitch, Hedges tried to steal second and Diaz did throw him out. Then Cerantola recorded his first strikeout against Halpin and his second K on Angel Martinez to end the inning with no damage done.
Cade Smith came in to get the save for Cleveland. Vinnie did single to get the tying run to the plate, but that was all the Royals could muster before Smith struck out the side including a challenged ball call becoming strike three against Isaac Collins to end it. The ABS challenge to end the game is a new phenomenon and not the one Royals fans wanted to see in this situation. They will have to win tomorrow to get the series win. No extra base hits and scattered singles and walks is not a winning formula most nights.
Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns #32 drives to the basket as Philadelphia 76ers center Adem Bona #30 gives chase.
Heroes and zeros from the Knicks’ 108-102 Game 2 win over the 76ers on Monday night at the Garden.
Hero
With the game on the line, Jalen Brunson came through, shaking off an inefficient night up to that point. Brunson scored eight of his 26 points in the fourth quarter, including the go-ahead jumper with 5:06 left, then pushed the lead to four with another midrange jumper.
His streak of five consecutive playoff games with at least 35 points against the 76ers did come to an end.
Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) puts up a shot over Philadelphia 76ers forward Dominick Barlow (25) during the fourth quarter. Jason Szenes for the New York Post
Zero
Without Joel Embiid, the 76ers needed Tyrese Maxey at his best. He only gave them one strong half. The emerging young star was shut down after halftime by the Knicks, held to just seven points. He shot just 9-for-23 from the field and committed six turnovers.
Unsung hero
Once he was able to stay on the court, Karl-Anthony Towns made his presence felt. After logging just eight first-half minutes due to foul trouble, Towns made a major impact, finishing with 20 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. The 76ers, minus Embiid, couldn’t guard him.
Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns #32 drives to the basket as Philadelphia 76ers center Adem Bona #30 gives chase. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Key stat
21: The 76ers’ field goal percentage in the fourth quarter, when they managed just 12 points.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 06: Nathan Eovaldi #17 of the Texas Rangers pitches during the eighth inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on May 06, 2026 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Ishika Samant/Getty Images) | Getty Images
There was reason to be optimistic heading into tonight. Will Warren has been outstanding early this season and the Yankee offense has been humming. Warren has been stingy with issuing walks and has kept the ball in the yard, while the bats have been posting crooked numbers on the regular.
Conversely, there was a very good reason to be pessimistic about tonight. Nathan Eovaldi entered tonight having not allowed a Yankee run in the last 16 innings he pitched against them. The last time a Yankee touched up Eovaldi was almost a calendar year ago on May 22, 2025, when Jorbit Vivas hit a solo home run off Eovaldi – the only run he allowed that night. Unfortunately (predictably, considering his history against us?), Eovaldi was more than up to the task of stifling the Bronx Bombers
Warren and the Yanks fell behind early. After getting a pair of quick outs in the first, Warren fell behind 3-0 to a scuffling Corey Seager. Warren, quite rightly, didn’t want to walk Seager in front of a hot Josh Jung, so unleashed a 96-mph fastball that hit the strike zone high and tight. To Seager’s credit, he turned on it, kept it fair, and deposited it in the short porch.
For the Yankees, Cody Bellinger came into tonight with a seven-game hitting streak, hitting .444 with 12 RBI in that span. He wasted no time extending it to eight games, singling off Eovaldi in the home first. Unfortunately, that ended up being an offensive highlight against Eovaldi.
After a quiet second inning, Texas touched Warren up again in the third. Brandon Nimmo drew a leadoff walk and, in the least surprising outcome imaginable, came in to score on an Ezequiel Duran double. Warren came into the game with a 5.3 BB% (91st percentile in baseball) so it’s tough to get too upset with him. But it’s illustrative of a baseball truism nonetheless. Leadoff walks come around to score.
Unlike the first inning, Warren couldn’t contain the damage. He left what was supposed to be a back foot sweeper to Evan Carter over the plate. Carter did not miss. His two-run shot extended the Texas lead to 4-0. After only surrendering four home runs in his first 37.2 innings, Warren allowed two in fewer than four frames tonight. Regression to the mean. Bah.
Warren walked two more Rangers in the fourth and, lo and behold, two more runs scored. A sacrifice fly and a single put the Yanks in a 6-0 hole. Warren managed to get out of the fourth but that was the end of the road in what was easily his worst start of the season. His command just wasn’t there tonight, uncharacteristically walking opponents and missing badly on the pitch to Carter. Yerry De los Santos, recently recalled to the Bronx, came on in relief to begin the fifth.
Meanwhile, Eovaldi continued to annihilate the Yankees. After Bellinger’s first inning single, no Yankees reached base except Jose Caballero, who took a curveball off the elbow, only to promptly be erased by a double play ground ball from Trent Grisham. Finally, in the bottom of the fifth, Austin Wells poked a single to left field for the Yanks’ second knock of the night. He advanced no further, and Eovaldi was through five with only 63 pitches.
The Yanks got on the board in the sixth, thanks to the prodigious power of Aaron Judge. The Captain drove a belt-high sinker to center field for his 15th home run of the season. As Joe Girardi noted in the booth, Judge also tied Paul O’Neill on the Yankee career RBI leaderboard. Judge’s blast mercifully ended Eovaldi’s scoreless streak against the Yankees at 21.2 innings. Please go away, Eovaldi.
De los Santos was a godsend for Aaron Boone, throwing 3.1 scoreless innings. Alas, as Michael Kay and Girardi pointed out, when a long guy throws that many innings and pitches (54), a one-way ticket back to Triple-A is the usual reward. At any rate, De los Santos’ performance kept Boone from having to burn through his entire bullpen. Similarly, Ryan Yarbrough covered the final five outs, so, despite Warren only going four, the vast majority of the bullpen got the night off.
Eovaldi stayed on the mound for Texas, and kept dominating the Yankee lineup. When his night finally ended after the eighth, it meant he’d thrown 15 innings of one-run ball against New York in the last week. Thank the baseball gods he’s in the AL West. Jacob Latz came on for the final three outs, snapping the Yankees’ five-game winning streak.
Join us tomorrow for the rubber game of this three-game set. Rangers offseason trade addition MacKenzie Gore will face Paul Blackburn, subbing in for an ill Ryan Weathers. First pitch at 12:35 pm ET.
Game 2 between the Knicks and 76ers on Wednesday night in Madison Square Garden was not a pretty game. At times, it was a downright ugly game with 43 fouls called, 31 turnovers, one flagrant foul, and one technical foul. Yet, when the final whistle blew, the Knicks had secured a hard-fought 108-102 win to secure a 2-0 series lead.
In many ways, this was not a game the Knicks should have won. They shot just 27% from beyond the arc, while the 76ers shot 38%. Jalen Brunson was only 9-for-21 from the field for 26 points with three turnovers. Foul trouble limited Karl-Anthony Towns to just eight minutes in the first half and 27 minutes in the game, and OG Anunoby seemed to get hurt with three minutes left and the Knicks up by six.
At most points in the regular season, that would have been enough to cause the Knicks to lose focus and let the game slip away, but not the playoff version of the Knicks.
Something happened to the Knicks after their Game 3 loss to the Hawks in round one of the playoffs. Maybe being down in the series finally crystallized how quickly this season could be over. Maybe they got a sense of the failed promise it would leave in its wake. Maybe they were just slow in adjusting to the elevated pace and physicality of the playoffs.
Whatever it is, something woke up inside the Knicks after that game, and this simply hasn’t been the same team since. It’s not just that they’ve won five games in a row. It’s not just that they’ve posted two of the most lopsided wins in playoff history. It’s that no matter what the opposition throws at them, they’ve been able to adjust their offensive approach and find a way to attack a different weakness.
On Wednesday, the Knicks had to adjust to a version of the 76ers that was operating at a faster, more frenetic pace. With Joel Embiid forced to miss Game 2 with ankle and hip injuries, the 76ers came out with their eye on fire, turning their offense fully over to their two young guards, Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe, the way they did early on in this season. From the jump, it was immediately clear that the 76ers would play faster without Embiid. On offense, they spread the Knicks out wide and didn't worry about making sure Andre Drummond had touches. They attacked the paint off the wing and either tried to finish at the rim or kick to shooters if the Knicks closed out. It’s similar to the style of offense the Knicks have been playing during their four-game winning streak.
As a result, Philadelphia made their first six shots of the game, including three threes, and raced out to a 15-8 lead. The 76ers had just three fastbreak points in all of Game 1. They had more than that by the end of the first quarter in Game 2 and had eight at the half. However, they would also finish with eight fastbreak points.
As they've done throughout this winning streak, the Knicks adjusted defensively. They cut off the 76ers' fastbreak attacks and pestered their ballhandlers with constant pressure. If the 76ers were going to run their offense through the perimeter, then the Knicks were going to force those guards to hold onto the ball despite somebody being all over them. It's a big reason that Maxey, who led the 76ers with 26 points and six assists, also had six turnovers on the day.
The Knicks also clamped down late in the game on Paul George, who was tremendous for the 76ers to start the game. George led both teams with five three-pointers, including two in the first quarter when he scored eight of the 76ers’ first 10 points of the game. At the end of the third quarter, George had 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting and had knocked down five-of-11 from three. By the end of the fourth quarter, George had 19 points on 7-of-18 shooting. In fact, the 76ers as a team did not make a field goal in the final seven-plus minutes of the game.
While the 76ers started hot and finished the game cold, the Knicks were ice cold from beyond the arc the entire game. In the Knicks’ four-game playoff winning streak coming into Wednesday, they had made 57-of-130 (43.8%) from three-point range. At some point, the Knicks’ shots were not going to keep falling at the rate they had been. That time was tonight. They shot 2-of-7 from three in the first quarter and continued to get and miss good looks throughout the game, finishing just 7-of-26 from deep.
With their shots not falling, they needed to find another way to win.
Early on, it seemed like that would be using Towns on the perimeter to attack a much slower Drummond. The Knicks’ big man hit two quick shots and dished out two assists in the first quarter, but then the fouls came. With a little over seven minutes gone in the first quarter, Towns picked up his second foul while challenging a Quentin Grimes drive. With Mitchell Robinson out for the game with an illness, Knicks coach Mike Brown had to turn to Ariel Hukporti again. The German big man quickly picked up three fouls of his own within two minutes of entering the game, and the Knicks had to turn to late-season free agent signing Jeremy Sochan as their center.
The fouls would continue to be far too big a story in this game. In fact, there were so many fouls that Madison Square Garden PA announcer Mike Walczewski seemed to lose his voice in the second half.
At the end of the first quarter, the 76ers had been called for seven fouls, and the Knicks had six. With three minutes left in the second quarter, the 76ers still had seven fouls, and the Knicks had 14. With 2:37 left in the second quarter, Adem Bona was called for a foul for running into Josh Hart from behind, and the Madison Square Garden erupted in a cheer so loud you’d think Brunson had hit a game-winner. By the time the third quarter ended, the 76ers had been called for 19 fouls, and the Knicks had been called for 17. All in all, the number of whistles created a fragmented and stagnant game that too often disrupted the rhythm of the offenses.
That was easier to see with the Knicks.
With their offensive hub, Towns, on the bench for long periods of time, the Knicks' fast-paced offense started to feel a little frenetic. Players cut into the same spots. Passes were hurried. Shots were frequently off-balance. Still, the Knicks keep pushing.
They abandoned using a big man altogether and used Josh Hart at the five. They used that small-ball lineup to continue trying to get out in transition. They were able to string together stops and turn them into quick fastbreak layups. Their shots from beyond the arc weren’t falling, so they kept attacking the basket, cutting hard from the wings and attacking a weak middle of the 76ers' defense. On the day, they had 15 points in transition to the 76ers’ six and 56 points in the paint to the 76ers’ 30.
With Brunson not shooting as efficiently early in the game, and Towns on the bench in foul trouble, the Knicks spread the offense around. They had nine players score in this game, and four players scored at least 18 points. Towns would wind up with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists, continuing his per-minute dominance in the playoffs. Mikael Bridges wound up with 18 points and five rebounds, while OG Anunoby added 24 points, five rebounds, four steals, and two assists.
It was a tremendous team win for a team that has continued to rise to the occasion this postseason. It seems that their next challenge may be trying to find a way to win without Anunoby, who came up hobbled while cutting to the basket with a little over three minutes left in the game. He would collect himself and attempt a dunk on the same possession, but he quickly motioned to the bench, was taken out of the game, and headed immediately to the locker room.
While the Knicks didn't have information about the extent of Anunoby's injury at the end of the game, there are only two days before the teams take the court again on Friday in Philadelphia. If Anunoby isn't out there for the Knicks, it will be a huge obstacle to overcome. The wing came into tonight's game averaging 21 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.6 steals, 1.1 blocks, and 1.1 assists in seven games this postseason while emerging as one of the best two-way forwards in the NBA.
For a team that has proven they can change the way they attack in order to pull out a win, playing without Anunoby may be one of the biggest adjustments the Knicks will need to make.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - APRIL 29: Tarik Skubal #29 of the Detroit Tigers pitches in the second inning against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park on April 29, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s Wednesday night here at BCB After Dark: the hippest hangout for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in for a while. We always have a seat for a friend, new or old. There’s no cover charge. The hostess will seat you now. Bring your own beverage.
BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.
Last night I asked you what was your favorite home run of the season, so far? Fifty-eight percent of you picked Conforto’s walk-off, and that was to be expected. Another 22 percent picked Dansby Swanson’s two-run home run in the top of the ninth in Los Angeles that ended up beating the Dodgers. But in truth, the poll was just a good excuse to relive some terrific highlights of the 2026 season. So far, of course.
The Cubs won their eighth in a row tonight, 7-6 over the Reds in ten innings. It was their third-straight walkoff and their 14th-straight home win. I think that calls for Judy.
Here’s the part with the music and the movies. You’re free to skip that if you want. You won’t hurt my feelings.
Tonight we are honored to have jazz guitarist Julian Lage join us from Tokyo and the summer of 2025. Joining Lage is Jorge Roeder on bass and Dave King on drums.
Before I we go on, I want to acknowledge the passing of former Atlanta Braves owner (and manager!) Ted Turner. There are a lot of obituaries out there and I’m sure you can find one on your own. But I want to take a moment to thank him for the creation of Turner Classic Movies, which is the greatest gift anyone has ever given to the cinephile community.
While much of the credit for what TCM is today should go to the people Turner hired to run the place, including longtime host Robert Osborne, it was Turner’s vision that created it. Turner bought the rights to a whole library of films, mostly from MGM, to show on his TBS Superstation in the eighties. More films than he could possibly show on a channel that also had Braves games and television reruns. Although he rightly got criticized for some of the early stuff that he did with those films, such as the colorization debate of the eighties, eventually he decided these films needed to be seen somewhere. So in 1994, Turner Classic Movies was launched as a commercial-free, uncut movie channel. Yes, they showed big hits like Turner’s favorite film Gone With the Wind, but they also showed tons of more obscure films that had mostly been forgotten. Nothing has been more instrumental in the preservation and distribution of the history of cinema than TCM.
People smarter than me have said that you can get a film school education just by watching Turner Classic Movies, free with your cable or satellite subscription. If you ask me how I know so much about movies, I certainly have read some books and listened to the commentary tracks on the physical media I buy. I have a Criterion Channel subscription as well. But mostly, I just watch a lot of TCM. So thanks, Ted.
Moving on. Last night, I watched my first Nancy Reagan movie, the 1950 noirShadow on the Wall, directed by Patrick Jackson. I’ve seen plenty of films featuring Ronnie, but this is the first film I’ve ever seen with a future First Lady in it. Obviously Nancy’s career, under her maiden name of Nancy Davis, was not as extensive as Ronnie’s, who was a much-in-demand supporting actor during his career. But Nancy does a fine job in Shadow on the Wall, even if it’s not in a terribly challenging role.
To be clear, Nancy Reagan is not the star of Shadow on the Wall. The film stars Ann Sothern, Zachary Scott and Gigi Perreau in a potboiler noir about a man, David Starrling (Scott), falsely convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of his wife. The only witness who can clear his name is his eight-year-old daughter Susan (Perreau), who has unfortunately blocked out the memory of the whole event because of the trauma. Davis (and I suppose I should call Nancy Reagan “Nancy Davis” from this point on) is in a supporting role as the psychologist trying to help Susan overcome her trauma and recover her memory.
The setup of Shadow on the Wall is that David’s wife Celia (Kristine Miller) is cheating on him with the fiancé of her sister Dell (Sothern). David confronts Celia about the affair and Celia, wrongly thinking David is going to kill her (don’t ask), hits him over the head and knocks him out. Meanwhile, Dell has jealousy issues with her sister and the affair with her fiancé was the last straw. While David is out cold, Dell shoots and kills her sister. Little Susan sees all of this from the hallway, but the trauma of the event forces it from her memory.
As far as the police are concerned, Celia and David were the only ones in the room. David wakes up with no memory of what happened and assumes the police are telling the truth when they tell him he murdered his wife. He’s tried, convicted, and given the death sentence.
Davis shows up now as Dr. Caroline Canford, a child psychologist who tries to help Susan get through the trauma of seeing her mother murdered. In order to do that, she needs to get her to remember what happened. To be clear, Dr. Canford is not doing this to find out who really killed Celia, at least not at first. She’s just trying to get Susan through her PTSD (although she calls it “shell shock” in the terminology of the time). But eventually as Susan begins to remember more and more, the doctor starts to suspect that maybe David may be innocent and that only Susan can save her father’s life.
Meanwhile, Sothern’s Dell needs to stop Susan from regaining her memory. As the girl’s closest-living relative (other than her father on death row), she puts on the charm offensive to try to get custody of her, which would make it all that much easier for Dell to kill Susan. So yeah, Sothern has the really good role here—playing a psychopath who murders her sister, lets her brother-in-law take the rap for her and is now trying to murder her niece. She plays it well and certainly Dell has some qualms about murdering her niece at first. But she’s so petrified of going to the chair herself that any moral issues she has slowly disappear as she becomes a monster. Dell’s first murder was just a crime of passion. Her attempts to murder Susan are just cold-blooded evil.
Gigi Perreau has the only other really good part here as Susan. Yes, there’s a kind of artificiality to the way her character is written and she’s certainly too articulate for an eight-year old trauma patient. But that’s the way all kids in movies were written at the time. She’s better than most child actors of the era.
As far as Nancy Davis goes, she’s fine? Good, even? Her psychologist character really has only one emotional state, concern and curiosity. There’s not a lot of range here, and that’s on the script. But she’s certainly believable as a concerned child psychologist and she handles the mid-century psychologist tropes with ease. This was Davis’ first big film role and were I watching this in 1950, I’d come away saying that she’s got a future as a fine character actress. Maybe she did.
At no point did she ever tell Susan to “Just Say No,” in case you were wondering.
Watching Shadow on the Wall reminded how much the theories of Freud was a major part of mid-century culture. The entire plot of Shadow on the Wall is about repressed memories and working towards catharsis.
Shadows on the Wall is a decent noir, not a great one. If you like shadows in your noir, then they’re a major plot point here, as you might deduce from the title. But the biggest reasons to watch it is Sothern’s great performance as a murderess and because you want to see what kind of an actress Nancy Reagan was.
Shadow on the Wall is available on HBO Max.
The trailer for Shadow on the Wall. Since Nancy Davis was an unknown when this film was released, she’s barely in this trailer. You can get a quick glimpse of the future First Lady at the 42 second mark.
Welcome back to everyone who skips the music and movies.
The Tigers got bad news as the co-Best Pitcher on the Planet™ Tarik Skubal is going to have surgery to remove bone chips from his left elbow. The Tigers are not putting a timetable on his return, but the normal timeframe on this is 2 to 3 months.
This is just another twist to one of the biggest storylines of the season. This is Skubal’s walk year and he was likely looking at a $400 million contract on the free agent market this upcoming winter. Because of that high number, many thought the wisest course of action was for the Tigers to trade Skubal last winter rather than let him leave this winter for just a draft pick. However, understandably the Tigers didn’t do that. They made the playoffs as a Wild Card last year and advanced to the Division Series. They lost that when Seattle won the winner-take-all Game 5 in the 15th inning. It wasn’t unreasonable to think that, with Skubal, the Tigers could make the playoffs again and have a decent chance to make it to the World Series.
Skubal’s injury puts a dent in those plans. As I write this, the Tigers are a game under .500. Of course, in the weak AL Central, that puts them in a tie for first place. As long as the Tigers are in spitting distance of the playoffs, they’re not going to trade Skubal at the deadline. Fangraphs gives them a 57 percent chance of making the playoffs, although I don’t think that number takes the Skubal injury into consideration.
But let’s assume that the Tigers do fall out of the playoff hunt in July and they decide to trade Skubal. There’s no guarantee of that, but it’s possible. The problem is, it’s unlikely that Skubal will be back on the mound before they have to make that decision. Yes, if Skubal comes back in exactly two months, that would have him return in early July with three weeks to go before the deadline.
The problem is that there is no reason to think Skubal will only be out the minimum. In fact, it’s in both the Tigers’ and Skubal’s best interests to make sure he’s 100% before he takes the mound. For the Tigers, if they have any chance of making some noise in October, they need Skubal at full strength for the playoffs. He gives them a chance to win any series, but only if he doesn’t re-injure himself trying to come back early.
For Skubal, he’s got about 400 million reasons to make sure he doesn’t re-injure himself before he hits the market this winter. He also wants to look good in every start he has left in Detroit.
So assuming that the Tigers decide to trade Skubal and assuming that he doesn’t make it off the injured list before the trade deadline, are you still willing to give the Tigers a haul for Skubal? This assumes that the medical prognosis is that Skubal is likely to return to the mound sometime around Labor Day, or at least before the playoffs. Of course, with injuries, there are no guarantees.
So the risk of trading for Skubal is that you have to give up multiple Top 100 prospects for maybe a month of the regular season and the playoffs of the co-Best Pitcher on the Planet™. The upside is that Skubal returns to what he was before the injury and he becomes the ace the team needs in the playoffs. He starts a few must-win games and the Cubs’ chances of winning the World Series goes way up.
The downside is that he comes back and he’s not the pitcher that he was before surgery. Or worse, he doesn’t come back at all or he comes back and injures himself again and doesn’t pitch in the playoffs. Then he leaves for a $400 million contract with the Dodgers or Yankees when the season ends. The Cubs farm system gets stripped for a bag of magic beans.
Any team that trades for Skubal is going to be buying what’s behind door number three without knowing if it’s a new car or a zonk.
It’s impossible to guess what it would cost in trade capital to acquire Skubal without knowing how his recovery is going. But the Tigers aren’t going to give him away cheap. The price, I would think, begins with two top 100 prospects. For the Cubs, that means something like Jaxon Wiggins and Pedro Ramírez. Or maybe Josiah Hartshorn and Jefferson Rojas. Since those players are closer to the bottom of the top 100 lists than the mid-section, there might be another throw-in prospect, but let’s just take it as two top 100 prospects for now. All this for a guy who is almost certain to leave after the season and for whom the Cubs will only be able to hope that he’ll be back to Cy Young form by October.
The cost would be high. The risk factor is high. The payoff is potentially huge. Would you make that kind of deal?
Thank you to everyone who stopped by tonight and all week. I appreciate every one of you who takes the time to join us. Please get home safely. Call a ride if you need to. Don’t forget any personal items. Recycle any cans and bottles. Tip your waitstaff. And join us again next week for more BCB After Dark.
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 6: Karl-Anthony Towns #32 of the New York Knicks drives to the basket during the game against the Philadelphia 76ers during Round Two Game Two of the 2026 NBA Playoffs on May 6, 2026 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
To quote SwissCheez, “another no call, surprising.” And Knicksyism: “No foul…” And rcnt123: “No matter who wins, this is such a piss-poor reffed game.” Excessive complaining about lopsided officiating is generally considered uncouth, especially if your team wins. Hence, we apologize for what follows.
New York made history on Monday. In defeating Philadelphia by 39 points, they became the first NBA team to win three straight playoff games by 25 or more. Tonight, a not-so-invisible hand seemed to be at work, ensuring that Game Two of the Eastern Conference semifinals would keep eyeballs glued longer. The skeptics among you will retort that Philly collected three more fouls tonight, but the whistles didn’t even out until well into the second half. Yet despite the thumb on the scale, the hosts trailed by only one point at halftime, 62–61, and by one after three quarters, 90–89. The game had 25 lead changes, but down the stretch, New York’s talent shone through, the Cheesesteaks were gassed, and the Knicks won, 108–102.
Each team was down a big man tonight. Philly started Andre Drummond in place of Joel Embiid, nursing a sore ankle/hip, and illness sidelined New York’s Mitchell Robinson. Both players underwhelmed in the previous game. Both will surely play larger roles as this series grinds on.
Through the initial frame, the score swung back and forth. The hosts inched ahead, but poor long-range shooting and one-and-dones allowed the guests to mount an 8-0 run. New York responded with a 10-2 stretch. And so on.
All-Star veteran Paul George (19 PTS, 5-13 3PT), playing his 123rd playoff game, scored 11 of Philly’s first 13 points. Meanwhile, one of New York’s All-Stars, Karl-Anthony Towns (20 PTS, 10 RBS), took his lumps. First, Towns knocked knees with VJ Edgecombe (17 PTS), and then Kelly Oubre, Jr. (19 PTS) karate-chopped him on a drive. The whack was reviewed and deemed a flagrant foul in a rare gesture of goodwill by the umpires. (KAT made a free throw and then cashed in the possession with a finger-roll layup.)
Paul George with 11 points for Philly already in the first quarter 🔥
Philly’s coach Nick Nurse schemed to put Towns in foul trouble and succeeded. Picking up his second at the 4:30 mark, Karl was swapped for Ariel Hukporti. Nurse had a scheme for Jalen Brunson (26 PTS, 9-21 FG, 41 MIN), too. The captain scored 14 points in the first quarter of Monday’s blowout; tonight, Oubre and Edgecombe took turns guarding him and held the captain to nine points in the opening period. After multiple contested misses, Jalen finally connected on a field goal (a 25-foot pull-up) with 1:30 left.
Before the quarter ended, Hukporti collected his third foul (in four minutes). Mike Brown had to dust off Jeremy Sochan, who mercifully kept his hands to himself. At the break, the guests led 33-31 thanks to making 6-of-9 from downtown.
Just when we thought Karl was cured. . . . In the first minute of Q2, Towns committed a forehead-slapping foul on Tyrese Maxey (26 PTS, 9-23 FG, 47 MIN). That sent the Knick to the bench again, right after scoring on a sweet floater. Josh Hart (7 RBS, 6 AST, 3 STL) replaced him, giving New York a center-less, small-ball lineup.
The refs definitely worked hard to keep this game competitive in the first half. Tony Brothers et al. whistled 14 fouls on New York and 10 on Philly. On one damnable sequence, the Knicks grabbed two offensive boards while missing three shots, and in that muddy mess, Drummond committed at least one foul that went uncalled. Close games are better for business, obviously.
Even with Maxey cooking, the Sixers sinking treys at an efficient clip, and the refs playing favorites, the Knicks kept the game close. When Hukporti recorded foul number four (at the 4:47 mark), Brown had to go small again with Brunson, Landry Shamet, Mikal Bridges (18 PTS, 9-13 FG), Hart, and OG Anunoby. This quintet promptly scored six points and knotted up the game at 54 apiece. Anunoby, playing the best playoff basketball of his career, finished with 24 points, five rebounds, four steals, a block, and a team-high +12.
On a subsequent possession, Josh got clobbered, yet managed to sink his layup (no whistle). Then, Brunson got whomped by Adem Bona and missed a layup (not a chirp). When Bona steamrolled Brunson with four seconds left, Jalen took New York’s first free throws of the second quarter. Read that again.
At intermission, Philly held a one-point lead. Through the half, the Knicks had made 53% of their shots, despite hitting just 25% from deep. Their biggest advantage was in the paint, where they were winning 38-16. The Sixers had hit 49% and 47%, taken 20 free throw attempts to New York’s 12, and outrebounded the Knicks 22-16. They’d also coughed up the rock 10 times (to New York’s six) and managed just six fast-break points.
In Game One, Maxey scored 13 points total on 3-of-9 shooting. By midgame tonight, he had shot 6-of-14 for 19 points (15 in the second quarter) and made 6-of-7 from the charity stripe. For the Knicks, Brunson had 16 points on 5-of-12 shooting.
To start the second half, the refs wasted no time calling Hart’s third foul, for what appeared to be a clean strip. My grandmother used to say, “The only way to beat a crooked ref is to make your shots and crash the glass.” The Knicks did their best to follow those instructions. It did feel like supernatural forces were working against them, however. Continuing a no-call theme, Brunson got fed through a wood chipper on a drive that tied the game at 79. Adem Bona (Drummond’s back-up) had to literally bonk Towns on the head to be penalized. Towns made one of two, putting the good guys up again. That was Karl’s last point of the quarter, though, as he got tagged for a foul immediately after and returned to the pine.
In the highlight of the night, Drummond used a broom handle to try four times to poke a stuck ball free. Towns calmly took the broom and bopped it free. That got the loudest cheer of the night.
Late in the quarter, Hart collided with OAKAAKUYOAK Quinten Grimes (7 PTS, 1-4 FG, 23 MIN), suffered a thumb injury, and had to leave the court. With Hart injured and Towns and Hukporti both carrying four fouls, the Knicks were disadvantaged and down 90-89 heading into the final frame.
No sweat. A warrior to the core, Hart returned to the court to start the fourth. At the midway point, with Philly answering every Knicks score, it was Hart’s three-pointer that tied the game at 99. A minute later, fellow former Wildcat Jalen Brunson drilled a 17-footer for the lead. Dominick Barlow provided a lift off the bench, and Philly had their chances, but bricks by Maxey (two), Edgecombe (two), and Oubre kept them down. Captain Clutch swished a turnaround jumper, and after a broken-up, sloppy sequence, the oft-maligned Mikal Bridges hit a long fadeaway to give New York a six-point lead, their largest yet. (Bridges deserves his flowers for his play in the series so far.)
OG Anunoby's dunk attempt gets blocked by Paul George and Mikal Bridges hits a big clutch jumper to put the Knicks up 6. pic.twitter.com/7c0jlD1tCa
Maxey played all but one minute of the game. It showed. He had hit 36 straight postseason free throws before missing one in the first half. In crunch time, the exhausted guard missed at the stripe, and Towns—the biggest man in the lane—easily wrangled the rebound to preserve a five-point advantage. At the other end, Cap made two freebies. Up seven, one minute left.
Also tired? Paul George. After hitting so many threes in the playoffs so far, he airballed from deep with his team down by five. Mike Brown called a timeout with 25 seconds left. After Miles McBride made a free throw, Maxey missed from 25 feet, and Brunson chased down the ball to close out the game.
Up Next
The series reconvenes on Friday in Philly. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.
Just when it seemed like this spring had limitless potential, a roadblock has been thrown the Knicks’ way.
OG Anunoby, in the midst of a brilliant postseason, suffered what appeared to be a right hamstring injury in the fourth quarter of the Knicks’ 108-102 Game 2 victory over the 76ers at the Garden.
Anunoby departed with 2:31 remaining and didn’t return. He wasn’t seen on the bench afterward or in the locker room following the win.
“He looked like he was hoppin’,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said.
New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby drives to the basket as Philadelphia 76ers guard Vj Edgecombe gives chase during the third quarter on May 6, 2026. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Brown didn’t have any information on the injury. The severity is unknown at this time. Anunoby went up for a dunk with 3:03 remaining, and Paul George blocked the shot.
He looked to be in discomfort on the cut to the basket.
Asked about his teammate’s uncertain status, Jalen Brunson said: “I’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. I don’t know too much.”
OG came up gimpy on this cut. Then tried and missed a dunk. Then asked out.
Before he got hurt, Anunoby was enjoying another big game, producing 24 points along with five rebounds and four steals. Entering the night, he was averaging 21 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.1 blocks in the playoffs. He was also shooting an absurd 59.4 percent from 3-point range on 4.6 attempts and the Knicks were outscoring the opposition by 20.6 per 100 possessions with Anunoby on the floor.
Losing him for any period of time would obviously hurt. He is the Knicks’ top defender and has become a critical piece on the offensive end.
“He’s one of the best two-way players in the league, and it’s tough to replace that,” Miles McBride said. “You don’t replace it with one guy. Everybody’s going to have to step up.”
Two years ago, Anunoby suffered a hamstring injury in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Knicks led that series 2-0 at the time and wound up losing in seven. Anunoby returned in the seventh game, but he was a nonfactor, clearly still injured. They obviously hope history doesn’t repeat itself.
The Knicks would likely go one of two ways if Anunoby misses time, either starting Miles McBride in a small-ball lineup or going with Mitchell Robinson at center and Karl-Anthony Towns at power forward.
“Extremely comfortable,” McBride said, when asked about the possibility of an increased role for him. “I feel like the coaching staff trusts me, I know my teammates trust me and I trust myself overall. So if that happens, I know I’ll be ready.”
NEW YORK — It’s the second quarter, and Karl-Anthony Towns is perched on his padded seat at the end of the New York Knicks' bench. He’s hunched over, staring at the floor. He’s shaking his head now, burying it in a towel. He mutters to himself.
It’s the second quarter and Towns is in foul trouble.
***
Towns is back. It’s the third quarter now, and he hasn’t missed a shot. He has embraced his new role as point-center, a role that has helped the Knicks become the most dangerous team in the East. Towns has been slashing to the rim, zipping passes to his teammates when the defense collapses on him. He has been lacing trail 3s.
But Towns picked up his fourth foul, so he’s back at the end of the bench, towel in hand, shaking his head.
***
It’s very late in the fourth quarter, and Towns is checking out of the game for the last time. Coated in sweat, he’s extending his hand out to courtside fans. He stops to dap up coach Mike Brown. He heads to the end of the bench and hugs Jose Alvarado.
After just missing out on what would’ve been his third triple-double of the playoffs, Towns and the Knicks scrapped their way to an uneven 108-102 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday, May 6. Now with a 2-0 lead in the conference semifinals, this game proved two things:
No team in the world has been playing better basketball than the New York Knicks.
The only team that can stop the New York Knicks in the East is the New York Knicks.
Entering Wednesday night, they had won their previous four playoff games by 135 points, most ever in NBA postseason history. They also became the first team in NBA history to win three consecutive playoff games by at least 25 points.
They have continuity and balance. They have a trio of demons in OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart, the architects of the best perimeter defense in the East. They can ignite on offense with Towns and Jalen Brunson.
But New York falls into foul trouble frequently. There are times, particularly late in close games, when the ball can stagnate on offense in the hands of Brunson.
This is all to say that, right now, the Knicks are the team to beat in the East. What’s more: this New York squad is the best this city has seen in a quarter century and its best bet to break a 52-year title drought. But to do that, the Knicks need to avoid the self-imposed mistakes, the avalanche of undisciplined fouls.
By the 5:47 mark in the second quarter Wednesday night, the Knicks had already committed 5 team fouls to put Philadelphia in the bonus; the Sixers, at that point, hadn’t committed a single infraction.
Yet, despite the disparity of free throws, New York entered halftime down by only one point.
In the second half, the Knicks responded and played smarter. They didn’t fall for the bait and adapted to the style of officiating, avoiding careless swipes at the ball. More importantly, they settled into their regular offensive rhythm.
Towns finished the game with an ultra-efficient 20 points on 6-of-8 shooting and nearly recorded his third triple-double of the postseason, adding 10 rebounds and 7 assists.
Brunson led all New York players with a steady 26 points. Anunoby added 24.
Now, this series flips Philadelphia, where the 76ers may get the return of star center Joel Embiid. For New York to close Philadelphia out, it will need its players to be available and on the floor and it will need to stick to its identity.
Because as currently constructed, there’s no other squad right now out East that can threaten this team.
The Yankees will not have their scheduled starter for the series finale against the Rangers on Thursday.
Manager Aaron Boone announced after Wednesday's loss that Ryan Weathers is scratched due to an illness. A new starter was not announced.
Boone said Weathers was ok and is now set to start Monday.
Ryan Yarbrough threw 29 pitches across 1.2 innings on Wednesday, while Paul Blackburn, another long reliever, last pitched Monday against the Orioles after tossing 17 pitches in 1.0 IP. The Yankees, whose bullpen has been taxed over the last few days, will have to try and piece it together before heading to Milwaukee for a three-game series with the Brewers.
The Yankees could also call up another pitcher and option Yerry De los Santos, who pitched 3.2 innings on Wednesday.
Weathers is having a solid start in his first season with the Yankees. In seven starts, he's pitched to a 2-2 record and a 3.03 ERA. He's struck out 45 batters across his 38.2 innings.
In his last start, Weathers allowed just one run on three hits and two walks in five innings in the win against Baltimore.
Aaron Boone says Ryan Weathers will not start tomorrow's game due to an illness he suffered this week, but he will pitch on Monday
Will Warren, who had not allowed more than two earned runs in any of his seven outings this season, surrendered three in the third inning alone in start No. 8.
Warren, whose season high for walks was three, matched that before the end of the fourth inning.
The Yankees offense, which had scored at least seven runs in each of the previous five games, was held to one run on three hits.
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The Yankees offense, which entered play leading the American League in walks, did not draw a walk in eight innings against Nathan Eovaldi, reaching a three-ball count just once (Trent Grisham, in the team’s first at-bat).
For both pitcher and team, Wednesday became something rare in the strong early going of the season: a dud.
Warren’s location was amiss and the Yankees offense missed plenty against Eovaldi in a 6-1 loss to the Rangers in front of 40,269 in The Bronx on a night that was pleasant before rain arrived late.
“It’s going to happen,” Aaron Boone said about Warren, who mixed in one poor start with six solid ones, but the manager could have been talking about his offense as well.
The Yankees (25-12) dropped just their third game in their past 18 and will turn to Paul Blackburn — and not Ryan Weathers, who was scratched with an illness — for Thursday afternoon’s rubber match in hopes of avoiding their first series defeat since April 10-12, when they were swept at Tampa Bay.
Will Warren struggled for the Yankees against the Rangers on May 6, 2026. Robert Sabo for NY Post
Warren allowed six runs on seven hits and three walks in four innings, swelling his ERA from 2.39 to 3.46 in less than 90 minutes. Every start matters for Warren, who is believed to be competing with Weathers to keep a rotation spot when Gerrit Cole returns in the next few weeks.
The young right-hander again had stuff good enough to swerve around bats, seven of his 12 outs coming from strikeouts, but he did not bait Rangers hitters to chase outside of the strike zone enough and watched as four strike calls were overturned through Texas challenges.
Rangers center fielder Evan Carter celebrates a home run against the Yankees. Robert Sabo for NY Post
“Just not real sharp with what I thought was good stuff again,” Boone said of Warren, who fell behind in counts too many times, a problem that became apparent immediately.
In the first inning, Warren threw three straight balls to Corey Seager. He then grooved a 3-0 fastball that was reversed to the short porch, a solo home run that gave the Rangers a lead they would not return.
They added on from there. After an eight-pitch walk to Brandon Nimmo, whom Warren could not put away to begin the third, Ezequiel Duran drove an RBI double into left-center. Later in the inning, Evan Carter saw a 2-1 sweeper sweep across the middle of the plate and hooked a two-run homer off the facing of the second deck in right.
“When you’re behind in the count, I think you’re trying to limit damage,” said Warren, who matched the most runs allowed by a Yankees starter this season. “Therefore you get finer, and you miss a little bit.”
Three of the first four batters reached in the fourth — Andrew McCutchen and Nimmo on walks — before a Duran sacrifice fly and a well-placed Seager single up the middle became the last of the damage against Warren. Warren, who had allowed five earned runs in his past four starts, was pulled after the six-spot. Yerry De los Santos (3 ¹/₃ scoreless innings) impressed quickly in the hours after his summons from Triple-A.
The entirety of the Yankees’ offense was home run No. 15 for Aaron Judge — his third in four games, sixth in 10 games and 12th in 23 games — in the sixth inning.
Aaron Judge homers in the sixth inning against the Rangers. Robert Sabo for NY Post
Otherwise, Eovaldi — the former Yankee and frequent Yankees killer, entering with a 3.05 ERA in 25 games against the club — looked like vintage Eovaldi, throwing 72 of his 101 pitches for strikes.
“He kind of stays unpredictable,” Boone said of Eovaldi, who kept the Yankees guessing and relied heavily on a splitter, curveball and cutter to strike out eight in his eight innings.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 06: Corey Seager #5 of the Texas Rangers looks on after hitting a solo home run during the first inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on May 06, 2026 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Ishika Samant/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Texas Rangers scored six runs while the New York Yankees scored one run.
After much consternation over the last few days (weeks? months? years?) about the offense, the Rangers had a few ingredients going for them tonight that left us with a better taste in our mouths.
For one, they had Nathan Eovaldi on the mound and he seems to have New York’s number. Sporting a 1.59 ERA over seven starts against the Yankees during his tenure with Texas, Eovaldi was practically as masterful as his win over New York from April when he went seven shutout innings.
Tonight, with the mood waning as the road trip trudges on, Eovaldi provided a pep in Texas’ step as he went eight innings of one-run ball on three hits with zero walks and eight strikeouts. The only blemish on his evening came when Aaron Judge won a sixth inning battle and swatted a solo home run. That’ll happen to anyone.
When that did happen, the Rangers were already up 6-0. Thanks to home runs from Corey Seager and Evan Carter, and with Brandon Nimmo and Ezequiel Duran doing work at the top of the lineup, the Rangers scored all six of their runs off New York starter Will Warren before the end of the fourth to muddy Warren’s previously sparkling 2.39 ERA coming into tonight’s game.
After surprisingly becoming something of the poster child for the club’s early season woes at the plate in what is surely one of the longest slumps in his career, Seager led off the scoring with a solo home run in the first. Carter followed with a two-run home run that capped off a three-run third inning. Four runs was plenty for Eovaldi and Texas still added a couple more in the fourth when they finally capitalized on a bases-loaded situation.
As an aside, this was the sort of game that ABS was made for. Tonight’s home plate umpire Quinn Wolcott has often been an ump tracking era darling. In fact, he was the top home plate ump during the 2023 season (despite missing ten calls against Texas during Game 2 of the 2023 World Series, the only game in the series that the Rangers lost) and is considered one of the better balls and strikes callers.
Tonight was not Quinn’s night however and both teams knew it. With Wolcott in desperate need of a recalibration, the teams made use of baseball’s shiny new toy to help prevent the game from going sideways. The Rangers and Yankees combined to contest nine of Quinn’s calls with Texas going 5-for-7 before running out of challenges in the eighth.
I shudder to recall the before times. Both 24 hours before when the Rangers couldn’t score runs and before when a bad night from the guy behind the plate could ruin a baseball game.
Player of the Game: Eovaldi is obvious and Seager, Carter, and Nimmo deserve notice but I’ll also highlight former Yankees prospect Duran for doubling in the game’s second run, hitting a sac fly, scoring a run, drawing a walk, and stealing a base from the 2-hole.
Subbing in for the injured Josh Smith, Duran has been one of the more productive bats in recent days and has seen his OPS rise to .833 on the year, the best non-Josh Jung mark that the Rangers have in the first week of the season’s second month.
Up Next: It’ll be breakfast with the Rangers for tomorrow’s series and road trip finale from the Bronx as LHP MacKenzie Gore is set to take the mound for Texas in the rubber match against RHP Ryan Weathers for New York.
The Thursday morning first pitch from Yankee Stadium is scheduled for 11:35 am CDT and you can find it on the Rangers Sports Network.
The Knicks tightened the screws on the Philadelphia 76ers in the fourth quarter to win a back-and-forth battle to grab a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Semifinals with a 108-102 win in Game 2 on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.
The Sixers, playing without Joel Embiid (hip, ankle), totally lost any semblance of offensive rhythm they had in the game’s final period, going 4-for-19 (21.1 percent) from the floor.
New York outscored the visitors 19-12 in the fourth and closed the game on a 12-3 run over the final 6:50 of action.
Here are some takeaways...
- After a blowout in Game 1, neither team managed to build much of a lead through the first three quarters, with the largest lead being seven for the 76ers and three for the Knicks. New York opened the fourth by committing three turnovers and a missed jumper in four possessions, before Miles McBride connected on his first jumper in four attempts to tie the game as Philly started cold (1-for-6).
The story of the Knicks may be the key players always popping up at just the right time: First, Jalen Brunson's jumper and OG Anunoby's layup to give them 20 and 24 points, respectively, forced a Nick Nurse timeout with the Knicks back in front. Then Josh Hart, who had struggled all night, connected on his first three, stemming a 5-0 Philly run. After four straight empty possessions for Philly, Mike Brown called a timeout with 4:01 to play and his side up two.
A Brunson turnaround jumper and another Sixers' missed bucket (3-for-16 in the quarter) led to another Brown timeout with 3:14 to play. After the Knicks nearly turned it over and missed a dunk, Mikal Bridges, who was having a great game, hit a jumper to give him 18 on the night and a 9-0 lead. The Sixers ended the drought with one from the line, but Brunson answered with two of his own with 66 seconds to play. And despite a few nervy moments, the visitors never found their legs.
- Foul trouble was an issue for Knicks’ big men in Game 1, and that repeated itself in the first: Karl-Anthony Towns picked up his second foul with 4:29 left in the first, forcing him to the bench with seven points and two assists. Ariel Hukporti entered (as Mitchell Robinson was unavailable due to an illness) but picked up three fouls of his own on the defensive end and had to sit with 46.7 to play in the first. (Jeremy Sochan got a cameo to close the period.)
And 46 seconds into the second quarter, Towns stuck a leg out against a driving Tyrese Maxey and went to the bench with his third foul. That put Anunoby at the five, and the Sixers’ Adem Bona took advantage with three offensive rebounds before Hukporti checked back in as Philly kept a slight lead. It wasn't long for Hukporti to pick up his fourth foul on a terribly silly one, 80 feet from the basket, and he hit the bench with 4:47 left in the quarter with Anunoby back at the five.
- The Sixers' ability to draw fouls was something the Knicks' head coach was concerned about heading into the contest after the Sixers attempted 34 free throws in Game 1. The Sixers picked up where they left off with 20 in the first half (converting just 14 of them). The Knicks, who went 9-for-10 from the line in the first, didn’t make a trip to the line in the second until a loose-ball foul with 3.9 to play. The Sixers managed to play 9:23 of the quarter without a foul. The foul count through the first half was 14 for New York (plus a Hart technical) and 10 for Philly.
The tight officiating continued in the third, with Hart picking up his third foul on what looked like a clean pick of Paul George. But Andre Drummond, in for Embiid, picked up two quick ones and forced him to the bench with four. Bona was forced to sit with under five left in the third after Towns got him for his fourth and fifth fouls of the game.
The Knicks held the Sixers to just four free throw attempts in the third, but the deficit was unchanged from the half. There were just two free-throw attempts (both by Philly) through the first 11:27 of the fourth before Maxey went 1-for-2 at the line late. Philly closed 21-for-28 from the free-throw line. New York was 21-for-25, with the visitors out-fouling them 23-20.
- Towns played just 8:17 in the first half due to the fouls, with nine points (3-for-3 shooting, 3-for-4 from the line) with one rebound, two assists, and a steal. He entered the third with an impetus, connecting on his first three attempts, on his way to scoring 10 points in the first five minutes, while drawing three fouls. Towns picked up his fourth foul on a play without much contact with 4:31 to play in the third, and, despite arguing with Brown, was subbed out.
He finished with 20 points (6-for-8) with 10 rebounds (two offensive), seven assists, and was a plus-6 in 27 minutes.
- Brunson started slow, missing his first three attempts, before connecting on a three, two at the line, and a baseline jumper to get off the snide and finish with nine points and three assists in the quarter. He finished the first half with 16 points on 5-for-12 shooting.
He finished with a team-high 26 points (9-for-21) with six assists and was a plus-7 in 41 minutes.
- Bridges, who has had quarters of passivity, had 16 points (8-for-11 shooting) with two rebounds, two assists, a steal, and a block, and had at least three field goal attempts in each of the first three quarters.
He finished with 18 points (9-for-13) as he slipped to the periphery a touch in the fourth, but still came up huge, adding five rebounds and two assists, and was a plus-7 in 38 minutes.
- Both teams were looking to push the pace, and that led to some turnovers (four for the visitors and two for the home team), but the Knicks were the only team to score off those miscues (5-0) in the first six minutes.Anunoby continued his two-way dominance with two steals and put in his seventh point to give the Knicks a lead, 18-17, erasing a one-time seven-point deficit seven minutes into play. He popped up with another such instance late in the third, grabbing two offensive rebounds in the same possession, which ended with him hitting from three.
The Sixers' offense was much improved from the first contest, but the turnovers hampered them as the Knicks punished their mistakes with 13 points off 10 turnovers in the first half, which helped keep it a one-point game at halftime. New York outshot Philly in the first half, 53.3 percent from the floor (24-for-45) to 48.8 percent (20-for-41), but the visitors owned the outside: 47.1 percent (8-for-17) to 25 percent (3-for-12).
The Knicks finished with 23 points off the Sixers' 18 turnovers. And held the Sixers to just nine points of their 13 turnovers. After the good first half, Philly went 5-for-17 from deep in the second. New York went 4-for-14.
- In Embiid’s absence, the Sixers were spreading the floor and taking advantage of the space. George really picked up the slack on the offensive end, connecting on his first four shots for 11 points. And Kelly Oubre Jr., who had been struggling from three, connected on his first two from the corner, as Philly was 6-for-9 from three for a 33-31 first quarter lead.
George found the touch again in the third with two more from deep. George finished with 19 points (7-for-18), six rebounds, four assists, two steals, and two blocks and was a minus-4 in 43 minutes.
Maxey started slow (1-for-4) in the opening quarter, but he righted the ship in the second, hitting four of his first four five to give him 15 in the game just four minutes into the second. Maxey finished with 26 points (9-for-23) with six assists, three rebounds and was even in his 47 minutes.
- Towns was left sprawling twice in the game’s early goings. First, when he picked up his first foul with an illegal screen and knocked knees with V. J. Edgecombe. Two possessions later, Towns took a huge shot to the head and neck area as Oubre fouled him right at the basket. (The foul was upgraded to a Flagrant 1.)
Game MVP: OG Anunoby
Anunoby finished with 24 points (9-for-17 shooting) with five rebounds, four steals, two assists, and was a team-best plus-12 in 37 minutes. He continues to be everything the Knicks need him to be at all the right times. Anunoby missed the game's final moments, but Brown did not have any injury update after the game.
The Yankees bats were shut down by Nathan Eovaldi and Will Warren had his first bad start of the season as New York fell to the Rangers, 6-1, on Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium.
New York had just three hits as Eovaldi has now allowed just one run across 15.0 IP in his last two starts, both against the Yankees.
Here are the takeaways....
-The Rangers took a first-inning lead for the second straight game. This time, Corey Seager launched a 3-0 pitch fromWarren and dumped it over the right field wall to give Texas a 1-0 lead.
The Rangers threatened again in the second, with back-to-back two-out singles, but Warren got Andrew McCutchen to strike out to end the inning. Warren couldn't keep the Rangers off the scoreboard in the third, however, after he walked Brandon Nimmo to lead off and Ezequiel Duran drove him in with a double that split the outfielders. Three batters later, Evan Carter drilled a hanging sweeper over the right field wall to give the Rangers a 4-0 lead.
Warren just didn't have it, tossing 90 pitches (52 strikes) across four innings, allowing six runs on seven hits. He struck out seven but he tied a season high with three walks.
It's the first time this season Warren has allowed more than two earned runs in a start.
-On the opposite side, Eovaldi continued his personal dominance of the Yankees. Last week, Eovaldi pitched seven scoreless innings against the Yankees, allowing just four hits and one walk while striking out seven. Wednesday was more of the same. Eovaldi went 5.2 innings without allowing a run until Aaron Judge launched his 15th homer of the year, and now leads the league in homers.
From there, Eovaldi continued his dominance, pitching eight innings, allowing just one run on three hits and striking out eight batters. Over his last nine games against the Yankees, Eovaldi has pitched to a 1.65 ERA, striking out 53 batters and walking only 11 across 59.2 innings pitched (h/t Katie Sharp).
-Yerry de los Santos was the first arm out of the pen, and he ate some much-needed innings. In his first game back after being called up, de los Santos pitched 3.1 scoreless innings, allowing one hit, one walk and striking out five batters.
Ryan Yarbrough followed de los Santos and delivered five outs without allowing a hit.
-Cody Bellinger continued his hot hitting, lining a single in the first inning to extend his hitting streak to eight games. He finished 1-for-3 with a walk.
-Jose Caballero went 0-for-2, with a hit by pitch. Eovaldi plunked Caballero with a curveball that hit him above the left elbow. The Yankees shortstop was looked at after he was in visible pain, but stayed in the game.
Game MVP: Nathan Eovaldi
The Rangers lineup woke up, but Eovaldi didn't need much on this night.
