Welcome to Staten News — where the banner went up, the rings came out, and Philadelphia didn't care about any of it.
Madison Square Garden got its moment Tuesday night. The Knicks raised their first championship banner since 1973, handed out the rings, and Jalen Brunson told the crowd the team wanted to give the city that summer feeling again.
Then the Sixers won the game 106-100.
🏀 A Ring Night Hangover
The Knicks actually led 58-54 at halftime. The third quarter is where it went sideways. Philly won it 29-18, took an 83-76 lead into the fourth, and New York never got all the way back.
Brunson, in gold sneakers, scored 21 with 5 rebounds and 3 assists in 34 minutes. He shot 6-of-19. The whole team shot 35-of-94, which is 37%, and that number explains the night better than anything else in the box score.
Karl-Anthony Towns gave them 19 points and 12 rebounds. Josh Hart added 14 and 7. Andre Drummond came off the bench for 12 points and 14 rebounds, which is either a great sign or a sign the starters needed help on the glass. OG Anunoby scored 10. Mikal Bridges scored 4.
Philly's new pieces all showed up. Tyrese Maxey led everyone with 28 points and 5 assists. Jaylen Brown scored 19 with 8 rebounds and 6 assists in his Sixers debut. LeBron James, starting his 24th season in a new jersey, had 14 points and 9 rebounds. Joel Embiid chipped in 13, 11 and 6.
And honestly? One loss in October means almost nothing for an 82-game season. But the Sixers came into the champions' building on banner night and won the second half 52-42 with a deeper rotation. That's the part worth remembering in April.
⚾ Tampa Bay Booked the Trip
The Rays didn't need a Game 7. They beat Cleveland 7-3 on Monday at Tropicana Field and won the ALCS 4-2, the franchise's third pennant.
Freddy Peralta gave them 5.1 innings and allowed one earned run, which was plenty. Junior Caminero went 2-for-3 with a home run in the seventh and drove in two. Yandy Díaz finished it in the eighth with a two-run shot that went 416 feet.
Cleveland went with a bullpen game and burned through eight pitchers. Shawn Armstrong opened and took the loss. That's what a bullpen game looks like when the bats don't cover for it.
Now Tampa Bay heads to Milwaukee. Game 1 of the World Series is Friday night on Fox, Game 2 is Saturday, and neither team has named a Game 1 starter yet. The Brewers swept the Dodgers and will have been off for more than a week by first pitch.
Rest or rust? We find out Friday.
🏈 Seventeen Straight, Still Short
The Giants trailed the Saints 34-10 with 11:31 left on Sunday at MetLife. Then they scored 17 straight points. It ended 34-27.
Malik Nabers caught 12 passes for 165 yards and kept dragging them back into it. J.J. McCarthy threw for 243 yards on 11-of-21 with a touchdown and an interception. Tyler Shough only threw for 144 yards for New Orleans, but three of his passes went for touchdowns.
Because comebacks don't count in the standings, the Giants now head to Houston on Sunday as 10-point underdogs.
Monday night, the 49ers beat Washington 23-17. Christian McCaffrey ran for two touchdowns, Brock Purdy went 21-of-29 for 264 yards, and Jayden Daniels threw for 300 and two scores in the loss.
📅 What's On Deck
Thursday: Patriots at Bears (Prime Video)
Friday: World Series Game 1, Rays at Brewers (Fox)
Saturday: World Series Game 2 (Fox)
Sunday: Giants at Texans, Dolphins at Jets, Packers at Lions, Chiefs at Seahawks, plus Steelers vs. Saints in Paris
Monday: Cowboys at Eagles (ESPN/ABC)
This is the week the baseball season ends and the basketball season stops being a ceremony. The Knicks get to find out what they look like when nobody's handing out rings.
Sources: ESPN box score, Sixers vs. Knicks, ESPN recap, Knicks banner night, ESPN box score, ALCS Game 6, ESPN game page, Saints vs. Giants
— The Bandicoots 🏀⚾🏈