Knicks beat 76ers in six games, will face Pacers in second round

The New York Knicks are moving on.

New York on Thursday eliminated the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 6 of their first-round series on the road 118-115.

Jalen Brunson and Co. got off to a hot start early, leading 36-22 at the end of the first quarter. But Philadelphia, at home, didn’t give up without a fight.

Philadelphia, led by star center Joel Embiid, closed the first half on a 43-18 run to lead 54-51 entering the third quarter.

The third quarter ended in both teams tied at 83-83, but the fourth was when New York used a 35-32 advantage to get past Philadelphia. Philadelphia trailed 109-101 but made it tight at the end before its comeback effort fell short.

Brunson led the Knicks with 41 points and 12 assists on 13-for-27 shooting. All five Knicks starters eclipsed double-digit points with Tom Thibodeau using just a seven-man rotation.

Embiid led the 76ers with 39 points and 13 rebounds on 12-for-25 shooting. Buddy Hield came off the bench and added 20 points thanks to 6-for-9 3-point shooting while Tyrese Maxey came back down to earth with 17 points on 6-for-18 shooting.

New York will now move on to the second round where it will have home-court advantage over the No. 6 Indiana Pacers.

Indiana, led by star forward Pascal Siakam and rising guard Tyrese Haliburton, beat the No. 3 Milwaukee Bucks in six games, also on Thursday.

Milwaukee had dealt with several injury issues throughout the series, most notably stars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, but the Pacers didn’t let up and have the talent to push the Knicks.

Indiana won the regular-season series over New York 2-1.