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The home team in the NBA Finals remained winless in their building, as the San Antonio Spurs won Game 3, 115-11, in much-needed fashion Monday night at Madison Square Garden.
New York still leads, 2-1, in the series, but the Spurs closed it out thanks to tremendous defense, timely baskets and forced the Knicks to go 2 of 12 from three-point territory in the fourth quarter. As a result, the Knicks' 13-game playoff winning streak has been broken.
Victor Wembanyama, who had a chance to win Game 2 but missed his final shot, finished with 32 points, eight rebounds and six assists to lead the Spurs.
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Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs reacts during the second quarter against the New York Knicks in game three of the 2026 NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden in New York City on June 8, 2026. (Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)
But it was Wembanyama's teammates De'Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle who scored the key baskets, aiding the winning efforts.
The Spurs came out with a clear determination to set the tone on the road, and it's what every basketball fan should have expected considering where the series was at the start. San Antonio had an 11-point lead after the first quarter, as Wembanyama scored nine points on 4-of-6 shooting, while Castle went a perfect 3-of-3 for seven points.
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But if there's one thing we've learned about the Knicks, it's that they will bounce back no matter the deficit. And it happened again before the end of the half.
New York began to pick up the pace, taking advantage of the sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden. They closed the half with a seven-point lead, 64-57, as OG Anunoby dropped 17 points on 5-of-6 shooting, including two 3-pointers and five free throws.
Jalen Brunson also scored 15 points, while Josh Hart, left wide open on purpose by the Spurs, hit his 3-pointers for 13 points.
The Knicks had all the momentum heading into the second half, but the Spurs started similarly at the beginning of this game. They forced turnovers and capitalized, erasing their seven-point deficit almost immediately.
Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks works against Dylan Harper and Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs during the third quarter of game three of the 2026 NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden in New York City on June 8, 2026. (Al Bello/Getty Images)
Both teams traded baskets, with San Antonio taking a one-point lead into the fourth quarter that was sure to be a heavyweight fight in “The Mecca.”
This time, however, the Spurs were finally able to maintain their lead in the fourth quarter, as the Knicks quickly got into foul trouble and allowed San Antonio to get the bonus right away. It was Wembanyama who took advantage of that, as the Knicks were cold to start the fourth.
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San Antonio took a lead by eight in the fourth quarter with 4:50 left after Wembanyama made two more free throws, and that led to some key defensive plays for the Spurs. The epitome of that was the Knicks attempting to move the ball for a three-point attempt, moving it across the arc. But the Spurs continued to get closer, all to end with Wembanyama rejecting Landry Shamet's layup attempt.
The Spurs' first key basket came from Castle with 1:53 left in the fourth quarter. San Antonio had only a four-point lead and Wembanyama passed the ball with just seconds left on the shot clock. With good Knicks competition in Castle's face, he hit a deep three-pointer from the wing to regain the lead to seven at a time when the Knicks had momentum.
Then, after Brunson hit the Knicks' first 3-pointer of the quarter to cut the deficit to three, Fox hit a dagger-like 15-foot jumper with 12.2 left in the game.
Anunoby, who finished with 28 points on 9-of-12 shooting, kept the Knicks' hopes alive with a 3-pointer after a timeout to cut the score to two with 9.4 left. But Castle made both free throws in a much-needed situation to close the door on New York.
Karl-Anthony Towns of the New York Knicks defends Stephon Castle of the San Antonio Spurs during the second quarter of Game 3 of the 2026 NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden in New York City on June 8, 2026. (Al Bello/Getty Images)
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In the end, Castle finished with 23 points on 8-of-14 shooting with five rebounds and five assists, while all of the Spurs' starters finished the game with double-digit points. Dylan Harper, who has played tremendous bench minutes for San Antonio, also scored 13 on 18 shot attempts.
For the Knicks, one stat line that stands out is Shamet's 1-of-8 shooting from the field, including 1-of-7 from the three-point line, where he has thrived throughout these playoffs.
The Spurs achieved victory with the assistance of President Donald Trump. He was sitting with Knicks owner James Dolan in a suite. The president's presence prompted increased security around the stadium throughout the afternoon and evening.
Game 4 of the NBA Finals will begin at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night at 8:30 p.m. ET.
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