Josh Hart took a swipe at the city of Philadelphia after the New York Knicks cruised past the 76ers to secure a place in the Eastern Conference finals.
The Knicks won Game Four 144-114 to seal a series sweep amid raucous support for the road team at the Xfinity Mobile Arena. The 76ers had appealed for home fans not to sell their tickets in the build-up but were evidently ignored as the Knicks received huge backing from those that made the short trip down the east coast.
“I used to think Philly was a sports town. I don’t know if it is anymore,” Hart told ESPN. “Everybody was begging for Philly [fans] not to sell their tickets. It never felt like a road game.”
Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey was disappointed the home fans clearly felt there was little chance of a comeback.
“It absolutely sucks, it just sucks,” he said. “There’s only one way to put a stop to it: We have to go out there and win these games. It felt louder in here for them than it did in the [Madison Square] Garden.”
Knicks impress once again to leave 76ers powerless
Even taking the crowd out of the equation, this was a dominant night for New York who racked up a franchise record seventh successive post-season win.
They shot 25 three-pointers – tying the NBA mark for a play-off game – to increase their average margin of victory through the first two rounds to 19.4.
“Our guys, they’ve tried to take it to another level with the focus on the details and their energy and effort level,” coach Mike Brown said. “And that’s a lot of the reason why we’re playing pretty good basketball.
“When you talk about the elite or the great in any business, I don’t care what business you’re in, there’s one word that stands out – it’s consistency.”
Another step in the process for New York, says Hart
Jalen Brunson finished with 22 points, Karl-Anthony Towns added 17, 10 assists and four rebounds and Hart had 17 points and nine rebounds in a fabulous team display.
The Knicks now await the winners of the semi-final between the Detroit Pistons and the Cleveland Cavaliers and they will do so with a calmness that hasn’t always been evident, most notably after their unlikely win over the then defending champion Boston Celtics 12 months ago.
“No relief, no jubilation. Just another step in the process,” Hart said. “The way we beat Boston last year, the comebacks and all that, it was – I don’t want to say it was celebratory – but it hit a little bit differently. Here, it’s business as normal, and we got to make sure we’re locked in and focused.”
Towns added: “Our team, the first year with each other, beating Boston last year we were very excited. This year, we’re locked into the moment, and there’s a lot more work to do. So, it’s great to see our guys kind of hungry for the next challenge.”
