The NBA Finals returned to San Antonio for the first time since 2014 tonight, but it did not end in a joyous celebration.
Victor Wembanyama put up a 26-point double-double in his first Finals appearance went to waste, as a late surge by the New York Knicks saw them take down the San Antonio Spurs 105-95 in Game One of the NBA Finals Wednesday night.
Things started a bit rocky for the Spurs in the first quarter, falling behind 14-7 midway through the opening frame. But then San Antonio awoke from their early slumber, ripping off a 20-3 run to surge ahead by ten.
Dylan Harper stole the show, scoring ten of his 16 points in the opening period, hitting a big three that extended the Spurs lengthy run.
Julian Champagnie hit two three pointers during the run, scoring six points in the frame. By the end of the first, the Spurs led 27-19, hitting four shots from deep in the quarter.
The Knicks would not go quietly however, starting the second quarter off with a 10-4 run that cut the Spurs lead back down to one. The two then began exchanging jabs, changing the lead eight times in the final five minutes.
But the Spurs would make one last push, taking a seven-point lead into the half thanks to another Champagnie three.
Champagnie buried three of his five shots from deep in the final two minutes of the second quarter alone.
Neither team could find their stroke in the first half. The Spurs shot just 40-percent from the floor, going 9-for-24 from deep in the opening half. The Knicks did not fare much better, shooting 40-percent from the floor and 6-for-20 from three.
San Antonio kept things rolling to start the second half, pushing their lead to fourteen at one point in the third quarter. The Knicks would respond with couple runs of their own to draw even again, with the two tied at 76 going into the final period. But Wembanyama did his best to keep the Spurs in front.
The fourth quarter saw the Knicks take the lead for the first time since the first half, eventually swelling to eight points. The Spurs would claw back, as they have all playoffs, cutting the Knicks lead back to one with three minutes remaining.
Wembanyama once again came up with a clutch bucket.
The Spurs would gain the lead but a Jalen Brunson three gave New York the lead right back. Brunson would hit another clutch bucket with 30 seconds left that put the game on ice, with the Knicks hitting free throws to close the game out.
Both teams struggled shooting, with the Spurs shooting 36-percent while the Knicks shot 41-percent from the floor. The two also struggled from deep. The Spurs went 11-for-43 from behind the arc, while the Knicks shot 11-for-36 from three-point range.
Turnovers, while kept somewhat to a minimum, hurt the Spurs. San Antonio coughed up the ball 13 times, which led to 19 Knicks points. Conversely, the Knicks turned the ball over just eight times, resulting in 14 Spurs points.
Brunson led the way for New York with 30 points on 12-for-31 shooting from the floor. Karl-Anthony Towns added 18 points and 12 rebounds, with OG Anunoby pithing in another 17 points. It is also the first NBA Finals win for the Knicks in 27 years.
New York now leads the series 1-0. Game Two is set for Friday night in San Antonio.
Photo: Gregory Shamus / Getty Images Sport / Getty Images