Knicks sweep 76ers; Cavs-Pistons tied

The East bracket got a lot clearer on Sunday and Monday — but only on one side. New York blew out Philadelphia 144-114 on May 10 to finish a 4-0 sweep and lock up a second straight trip to the Eastern Conference finals. Cleveland, meanwhile, evened its series with Detroit at 2-2, so the Knicks now wait while the other semifinal turns into a best-of-three. ### How emphatic was the Knicks closeout? It was not a squeaker. New York led by 20 before the first quarter ended, pushed the margin as high as 44, and basically turned a road elimination game into target practice. The final was 144-114, and that score almost undersells how lopsided it felt through three quarters. (nba.com) ### What actually broke Philadelphia? The 3-point line. New York hit 25 threes on 44 attempts in Game 4, which tied the most makes in any NBA playoff game and set a franchise record for the Knicks in either the regular season or postseason. Philadelphia made just 8 threes, so the gap from deep was enormous before anything else even got complicated. (nba.com) ### Who drove that explosion? It was one of those nights where the Knicks came at Philly in waves. Miles McBride led six Knicks in double figures with 25 points and went 7-for-9 from deep. That matters because a sweep gets scary when it is not just one star carrying everything — it means the opponent has run out of places to hide. (nba.com) ### Was this just one hot night? Not really — that is the part Philadelphia should hate most. New York also shot 51% from 3 in Game 1, and NBA.com noted the Knicks became just the third team to shoot better than 50% on at least 35 3-point attempts twice in the same playoff series. So yes, Game 4 was absurd, but it also fit a pattern. (nba.com) ### What does New York get now? A break, and that is huge in May. The official playoff bracket now has New York sitting in the East finals while Detroit and Cleveland keep trading blows in the other semifinal. The Knicks do not have to survive another round first — they get to watch, recover, and scout. ### So what is happening in Cavs-Pistons? (nba.com) That series has flipped from Detroit control to dead even. The Pistons won the first two games, then Cleveland answered with a 116-109 win in Game 3 and a 112-103 win in Game 4. The series is now 2-2, with Game 5 set for Wednesday, May 13, in Detroit. ### Why does the tie feel bigger than a normal 2-2? (nba.com) Because Cleveland had looked one bad night from a collapse, and now the pressure has swung back across the court. Donovan Mitchell is averaging 33.0 points in the series, while Cade Cunningham is at 23.5 points and 8.3 assists for Detroit. Home teams have won all four games so far, which makes Game 5 feel less like a middle game and more like the hinge of the whole matchup. (nba.com) ### What is the Knicks angle in all this? New York’s path suddenly looks cleaner. The Knicks handled their business fast, got through without needing a Game 5, and now avoid spending the next few days taking playoff body blows. But the catch is that the waiting opponent could still be either the East’s No. 1 seed in Detroit or a Cleveland team that just found its footing after an 0-2 hole. (nba.com) The bottom line is simple — the Knicks are already where they wanted to be, and everyone else in that half of the bracket is still paying admission. New York swept. Cleveland survived. Detroit still has home court. The East finals spot on one side is settled, but the matchup is very much not. (nba.com)