BBNBA: Karl-Anthony Towns struggles, but Knicks advance to second round of NBA Playoffs

It was an up-and-down series for Karl-Anthony Towns, but regardless, his New York Knicks are still alive in the postseason.

On Thursday night, Towns and the (3) Knicks took care of the (6) Pistons in a Game 6 elimination setting in Detroit, winning 116-113 in what was yet another entertaining matchup between these two teams — which clearly won’t be sending each other Christmas cards this year. Detroit easily could have (and probably should have) won this game down the stretch, but some unforced errors and a massive shot from Jalen Brunson pushed the Knicks over the finish line. The victory gifted New York a 4-2 series win and a spot in the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the (2) Boston Celtics.

Towns, who had plenty of shining moments in this series, had equally as many disappointing ones. We saw the latter on Thursday night. The five-time All-Star struggled for the third time in six games against Detroit. He finished with just 10 points on 4-10 shooting, although he did record 15 rebounds, two assists, and two steals in his 37 minutes. There were long stretches in this series where his presence was hardly felt.

All that being said, KAT averaged 19.7 points and 10 rebounds per outing this series on shooting splits of 48.9/48/90. But the consistency from game to game is what’s lacking.

“Read the game, the game tells you what to do,” Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau said when asked how he could get Towns into more open space. “He’s got to keep moving, we’ve got to search him out.”

Towns did produce huge games in this series, most notably his 31-point, eight-rebound performance in the critical Game 3 win on the road. He followed that up with 27 points and nine rebounds in another road win. But he scored just 10 points in Game 2 and 17 points in Game 5 — both New York losses. Against Boston next series, the Knicks will need everything Towns brings to the table.

The Knicks certainly don’t make anything easy on themselves. A matchup with the Celtics should make for highly entertaining hoop. Game 1 in Boston is set for Monday, May 5.

Murray, Nuggets forced into Game 7

Seven games felt like the only option for this series going in. The (4) Denver Nuggets and (5) Los Angeles Clippers were a perfect matchup on paper, and that’s proved correct as we’re now tied 3-3 going into a decisive Game 7 this weekend. The Clippers forced a final game with a 111-105 win at home over the Nuggets on Thursday night.

James Harden (28 points) and Kawhi Leonard (27) fueled the win for LAC, which led for nearly the entire second half. The Clippers were up by as many as 15 points before giving the Nuggets a small sliver of hope down the stretch. Jamal Murray was good for Denver, but nothing compared to his 43-point outburst in Game 5. He put up 21 points, eight rebounds, eight assists, and three blocks in 44 minutes while shooting 9-19 from the field in Game 6.

“They were quicker to the punch,” Murray said postgame. “They played with a lot more desperation because their backs were against the wall, and you’ve got to give them credit. The whole game, they brought it.”

The Nuggets can’t afford a slow start in Game 7 back at home. Tipoff on Saturday is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on TNT. Denver has not won a Game 7 since 2000. This is appointment television.

5/1/25 Statistics

Player	Score	PTS	FG (3PT)	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	MIN
Jamal Murray (DEN)	111-105 L @ LAC	21	9-19 (2-6)	8	8	0	3	3	2	44
Karl-Anthony Towns (NYK)	116-113 W @ DET	10	4-10 (0-1)	15	2	2	0	3	8	37

Tonight in the NBA Playoffs

Western Conference First Round | Game 6 | GSW leads 3-2
9:00 (ESPN) | (2) Rockets (Sheppard) @ (7) Warriors (Knox)