New York sends 76ers packing with 4-0 semis series sweep

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The New York Knicks brought out the brooms and completed a 4-0 semifinal series sweep over the Philadelphia 76ers, 144-114, in Game 4 of the NBA Eastern Conference playoffs on May 11, 2026, at the Xfinity Mobile Arena.

Before the 2025-26 NBA playoffs, the Knicks’ last clean sweep took place in 1999, when they were still spearheaded by the underrated trio of Latrell Sprewell, Allan Houston, and Larry Johnson.

Twenty-seven years later, the Jalen Brunson-led New York squad imposed its dominance in the big boys’ league once again, schooling Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers with a Game 4 offensive masterclass.

After struggling to consistently shoot from downtown in Games 2 and 3, the crucial Game 4 couldn’t have come at a better time as the Knicks recorded their best 3-point shooting performance in the ongoing playoffs with 25 drained treys out of 44 attempts.

A 56% 3-point shooting clip on the road, in front of a wild and hopeful crowd of 19,746 loyal Philly fans.

That’s just ridiculous.

As the white and blue nation hoped for a home win to extend the semis series, New York had other plans and spoiled the 76ers’ come-from-behind rally with a first-quarter blitz, leading by as much as 21 points behind the hot shooting of Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Mikal Bridges.

To make things worse for the struggling 76ers, Miles McBride, New York’s off-the-bench energizer, picked up where the trio left off and outscored Paul George and Tyrese Maxey in the final five-minute stretch of the opening frame.

Rattled, disoriented, and anxious because of the loud boos from the Philly crowd, the 76ers never recovered and allowed the Knicks to build a commanding 24-point cushion at the half, 81-57.

Shades of Philly’s Game 5 adjustment against the Boston Celtics occurred at the start of the third quarter, when head coach Nick Nurse tried to bank on Embiid’s post prowess in hopes of getting the other guys going.

However, the second time wasn’t a charm as Embiid received multiple bodies upon catching the high-low pass, rendering Nurse’s desperate strategy futile.

No matter what kind of changes Philly brought to the game, the Knicks always had answers.

New York sent the early exclamation point in the final four minutes of the third frame, submerging the 76ers with a demoralizing 17-4 scoring run.

Before the clock buzzed, the lead had piled up to 44 points, the biggest advantage New York had during the lopsided Game 4 win.

With the situation insurmountable, the 76ers concluded their 2025-26 season in anticlimactic fashion after Nurse called for a bench-clearing with a full quarter still left to play in the elimination playoff game.

Leading the way for New York was McBride, who delivered a game-high 25-point performance on an efficient 7-of-10 shooting from the field, all from 3-pointers.

Brunson added 22 markers and six assists, while Towns bounced back from his foul-plagued Game 3 outing and capped the series win with 17 points, 10 dimes, four rebounds, and two blocks.

New York became the first team to clinch a ticket to the conference finals, awaiting the winner between the Detroit Pistons and the Cleveland Cavaliers.