76ers collapse in the final 27 seconds, go down 2-0

Collapsed isn’t even the right word.

To call this a collapse is almost a compliment.

101-96 with 27 seconds left. I said in in the game preview that the Sixers needed this because in NBA history teams that go down 2-0 in a series are 33-414. The 76ers are either about to join an elite club of 33 teams or disappoint us per the usual.

Let’s get into what all of this means for the 76ers going forward and a game recap along with it.

Things started off really well. It seemed like the 76ers had perfectly carried out all the adjustments they wanted to make. They were being more aggressive for rebounds, taking better shots, and the defense gave up just 18 points! Tyrese Maxey was doing great he had 9 and Embiid looked like he hadn’t skipped a beat, he started off on fire with 12 points.

Everyone knew the Knicks would wake up and the second quarter was when each team was at its best going blow for blow with great basketball. Josh Hart was banging threes (again how??) and had 12 second-quarter points while Maxey got even better than he was in the first quarter and had 11 points. At half the 76ers liked where they stood, with a 53-49 lead. Improvements and adjustments were needed, but a lot had gone right.

The third quarter has been crucial in games 1 and 2. The 76ers propelled themselves back into the game in game 1 and the Knicks took a commanding lead in the 3rd quarter here in game 2. Isiah Hartenstein caught fire he had 10 points with 5 boards to go along with it. Joel Embiid let his presence be known once again as he had 13 of the 21 Sixer points in the quarter. The Knicks finally took their first lead of the game in the midst of a 10-2 when Jalen Brunson hit a small floater. Going into the 4th quarter it wasn’t great, but far from over in a 74-79 game.

I’ve said this before, but this fourth quarter is extremely important. Against a team as good as the Knicks falling down 2-0 would be almost certain death. So these 12 minutes are the most important of the team’s season. Keep that in mind when you read what happens,

The 76ers dominated for most of the quarter with a 19-6 run spanning almost 7 minutes. It looked like the team had made the perfect adjustments and were going to go to Philly with a tied series. But these are the 76ers. We were all too naive to believe that would happen. 27 seconds left. 101-96 lead. Free throws, ball control. Simple as that.

Jalen Brunson didn’t make it easy after nailing a 3-pointer to make it 101-99. Easy enough though right? Inbound, get fouled, make 2 free throws, and then either get a stop or repeat the process right? How about inbound, losing the ball, call timeout, getting ignored, and watching Donte DiVincenzo call game?

You heard that right Nick Nurse called timeout when Maxey was on the ground! “I called timeout, the referee looked right at me, didn’t call it,” is what Nick Nurse said. I don’t typically like to blame referees for losses, but not being able to notice a timeout? Take that as you will.

The 76ers were victims of unfortunate circumstances in becoming the 7 seed. But like it or not you have to make do with the opportunities you get in sports whether you’re the 7 seed or the 1 seed. Especially after dedicating years of purposely tanking in the 2010s to get over the hump! Now obviously that’s a discussion for another day so let’s focus on right now. The 76ers need to take both of their home games to have a chance. Regain momentum, regain morale, and go back to MSG in game 5 with a tied series. If they go down 3-0, or 3-1, we can start looking forward to free agency.

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