Jalen Brunson leads the New York Knicks to their first NBA title in 53 years

Jalen Brunson's 45 points lifted the New York Knicks to their first NBA Finals in 53 years after defeating the San Antonio Spurs 94-90 in Game 5 on Saturday.

After a brutal first half from the Knicks' shooting, Brunson dropped 29 of his 45 points in the second half as he carried the Knicks on his back to a title.

He finished shooting 14-27 (4-7 3PT, 13-15 FT) along with three rebounds, three assists, and two steals. His 45 points are the most ever by a Knicks player in a single NBA Finals game, rightfully earning him Finals MVP.

Brunson also joins Michael Jordan, Jerry West, Kobe Bryant, James Harden, and Allen Iverson as the only guards to put up double-digit 40-point playoff games.

No other Knicks player had more than 15 points in Game 5. Now, the slump is officially over as the Larry O'Brien returns to The Big Apple for the first time in over half a century after defeating the Spurs. 

First half recap + highlights

The start of Game 5 was a defensive showcase from the Spurs as they held the Knicks to just 18% shooting (4-22) in the first quarter. 

Brunson (8) and OG Anunoby (5) made up the Knicks' 13 first-quarter points, while the rest of the team went 0-11 from the field. 

Wemby got off to a hot start on the defensive end, putting up three blocks in the first four minutes of the first quarter alone, also scoring the game's first two points, which didn't come for almost a full three minutes into the matchup. 

The Spurs got out to an 18-8 start, making it five straight games they had taken a double-digit lead in the first quarter. 

But despite the Knicks having made just six field goals and committing nine turnovers with 7:30 left in the second, they would battle back quickly thanks to their star point guard. 

Brunson's 16 points (3-4 3PT) and Dylan Harper's 11 made them the only two players with double-digit points in the first half. New York's bench went 0-for-8 from the field as Brunson made six of the Knicks' 13 field goals in the first half. 

New York went on a 10-2 run and cut the deficit to 40-37 with one minute left before the half. Their 37 points were the fewest they've scored in a half these finals. 

Wemby entered the locker room just short of a double-double, recording nine points (3-10), nine rebounds, five blocks, and two assists. He became just the sixth player since 1998 to record at least five blocks in the first half of an NBA Finals game, joining Spurs royalty Tim Duncan (2003)

San Antonio's Devin Vassell drilled a halftime buzzer, his second FG of the game, as the Spurs didn't shoot much better in the second (34%), making for one sloppy half of basketball. 

Second half recap + highlights

Wemby would come out scorching in the second half, reaching a 12-10 double-double in no time. He would enter the fourth quarter with 16 points and 12 rebounds. 

But it was the rookie Harper who shone the brightest during the second half of Game 5.

Through 4:21 in the third quarter, Harper continued to shine off the Spurs' bench. He put up 18 as the Spurs' bench outscored the Knicks' a whopping 21-0 at that point.

Spurs went on a 9-0 run with all nine of those points coming from Harper.

He would finish the game going 10-19 (2-4 3PT) with a career-high 25 points, along with five assists, four rebounds, and one block. 

Brunson scored 14 points in the third quarter alone as the Knicks' bench wouldn't score a single point until Jordan Clarkson hit a floater with 39.5 seconds left in the third quarter. 

Mitchell Robinson would soon follow with two points of his own as the Knicks' bench went into the fourth scoring just four points as they were down by 72-65. 

Wemby would send the crowd into a frenzy to start the fourth quarter, putting the Spurs up 77-68 with an emphatic dunk off the baseline. 

Brunson continued to put the Knicks on his back, scoring 10 crucial points in the fourth quarter that would tie it up 83-83 before he gave the Knicks the 86-85 lead with under 3:40 after drawing a crucial foul behind the arc, making all three of his free throws. 

It would be the first Knicks lead since they were up 5-4 at the start of the game. Brunson would go on to score the most points in one NBA Finals game by a Knicks player in franchise history. 

Karl Anthony-Towns fouled out with 1:53 left in the game with the Knicks up 88-85, putting Wemby on the free-throw line after the Spurs had missed nine of their last 10 shots at that point. 

Wemby would hit one of two to make it a one-point game before Harper would drain a turnaround to tie it up. But, in fashion, Brunson would drain another bucket on the other end to make it 90-88.

Stephon Castle would score his first two points of the night with a tip-in to make it a two-point game (92-90) with 16.3 seconds left, but it wasn't enough as the Knicks maintained the lead until the clock rang 0.0.