The opponents keep getting better, the stage keeps getting bigger, and the New York Knicks keep getting closer to their first title in over five decades. Playing in their first NBA Finals in 27 years, and having not played a game in more than a week or lost in more than a month, the Knicks defeat ed the San Antonio Spurs 105-95 in Game 1 on the road at Frost Bank Center. The Knicks, who erased a 14-point third-quarter deficit, extended their winning streak to 12 games. They became just the seventh team in NBA history to win 12 straight postseason games, which includes seven straight road wins by double digits. The victory also gave the franchise its first series lead in the NBA Finals since 1994. Jalen Brunson, after hobbling to the bench for two different injuries suffered during the game, scored 13 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter to help put the Knicks three wins away from their first championship in 53 years. “He’s a gamer, man,” Knicks coach Mike Brown told reporters after the win. “In the biggest moments, he shows up. That’s what MVPs are supposed to do.”    OG Anunoby scored 12 of his 17 points in the fourth-quarter, including a pair of 3s that helped give the Knicks an 86-81 lead with 8:50 remaining. Stephon Castle responded with a three and Devin Vassell followed with a putback to even the score. Brunson then scored eight straight to put the Knicks up 94-86 with 6:34 left. Victor Wembanyama answered with a 3 and scored eight points during a 9-0 run that put the Spurs back on top at 95-94 with 2:16 left. Brunson at the other end kept possession alive by deflecting an offensive rebound and hitting the 3 for a 97-95 lead. Mikal Bridges followed with a pair of free throws, and Brunson hit a floater to increase the lead to six with 37.8 seconds left. The Knicks closed the game on an 11-0 run to secure the win. Karl-Anthony Towns had 18 points and 12 rebounds, and Landry Shamet added 13 points off the bench. Josh Hart had only three points but grabbed 15 rebounds and added six assists and four steals. The Knicks managed double-digit road victory despite struggled from the field by shooting just 41% overall. “I think we know what we have to do,” Brunson said. “I think we’re a pretty together group.” Wembanyama led the Spurs with 26 points and 12 rebounds, but he went just 6-for-21 from the field. The Spurs shot 36% overall, going just 11-for-43 from deep. “I was bad tonight,” Wembanyama told reporters. “It’s not more complicated than that.” The Knicks, playing in their first finals since losing to the Spurs in 1999, had dominated their Eastern opponents with ease while chasing their first championship since 1973. They entered Wednesday’s game having won 11 consecutive games by a margin of 262 points – the most lopsided 11-game stretch in NBA history. But their biggest challenge of their postseason run awaited in the finals with a 62-win Spurs team coming off a Game 7 win over the defending champion Thunder to reach their first finals since beating the Miami Heat in 2014. The Knicks jumped out to a 14-7 lead as the Spurs struggled from the field, making just one of their first eight 3-point attempts. San Antonio then responded with a 12-0 run, led by Dylan Harper, who scored 10 first-quarter points. The run extended to 20-3 after a pair of 3’s by Julian Champagnie that helped push the San Antonio lead to 27-17 with 1:27 left in the first. That led to a Knicks timeout, where Brunson exited the game and limped back to the locker room with an apparent right knee injury after San Antonio’s Harrison Barnes fell into him after being fouled while going for a rebound. The Knicks responded with a 7-0 run without Brunson and pulled within three before he returned with just over eight minutes remaining in the second quarter. Brunson, after making just two of his first nine shots, scored eight straight for the Knicks, overcoming an ankle injury that once again sent him limping back to the bench, to put them up 38-37. Champagnie hit three 3’s over the final two minutes of the quarter to help the Spurs take a 55-48 lead into the break. Champagnie led the Spurs with 15 points in the first half, going 5-for-6 from beyond the arc. Brunson led the Knicks with 11 first-half points but shot just 5-for-15 in the half. The Knicks shot 41% from the field and attempted only three free throws in the half – a total they improved in the second half by finishing 16-for-18 from the stripe. The Spurs increased their lead to 14 midway through the third on a floater by Harper that made it 65-51. With Wembanyama on the bench, the Knicks chipped away, as Brunson capped a 7-0 run with a layup to pull New York within 67-61. Towns converted a pair of putbacks, the latter plus the foul for a 3-point play, and Brunson followed with a pullup jumper to even with score at 71-71 with two minutes left in the third. After a Wembanyama slam put the Spurs up three, Miles McBride managed to bank in a corner 3 in the closing seconds of the third to even the score at 76-76. Brunson and the Knicks then pulled away in the fourth, handing the Spurs their first loss in a Game 1 of the NBA Finals in franchise history, with San Antonio having previously been 6-0 in openers of the title round. Game 2 is Friday in San Antonio at 8:30 p.m. ET. “We have a long way to go,” Brunson said. ...read more read less