3 reasons the New York Knicks lost to the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 5

Despite a late lead in the fourth quarter, the New York Knicks lost to the Philadelphia 76ers, 112-106.

New York seemed on their way to the second round of the playoffs after leading the Sixers late in the fourth quarter. The Knicks had a 4-point lead with 15 seconds left in the fourth quarter but were unable to do much on either side of the floor which allowed Philly to come back and force overtime.

Despite a great couple of possessions from Jalen Brunson in the opening seconds of overtime, the Sixers were able to ride Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid toward a victory.

As the Knicks look to rebound, here are three reasons why the franchise was unable to win a Game 5 that would have sent them to the next round.

3. Poor shooting from Donte DiVincenzo and others

The New York Knicks struggled to get points in this game and needed every single bit of magic from Jalen Brunson. New York could have avoided this fate by shooting a lot better from the 3-point arc. Donte DiVincenzo, the Knicks sharpshooter struggled as the Nova product went 1-for-7 from distance.

Josh Hart also struggled from the arc as the guard ended up shooting 1-of-6. Hart's misses from three are a lot more passable as the veteran helped the team in a lot of other ways. Yes, Hart missing a crucial free throw late in the fourth quarter is inexcusable but at the very least he contributed.

2. Jalen Brunson's late mistakes

Despite struggling late in this game, the Knicks still had a chance to win. They lost that chance after Brunson turned over the ball on one of the final possessions. After not being able to close the game, the Knicks desperately needed Brunson to help out his franchise.

Yes, the star ended up having an amazing game but the last turnover will be something that fans remember until Game 6.

1. Inability to guard Tyrese Maxey

While the Knicks had other struggles in this game, they were unable to guard Tyrese Maxey. Yes, the young star shot amazingly and made crucial shots from the logo of all places but New York did not do well on the defensive end against him. Maxey ended up with 40 points on 56 percent shooting from the floor.

While Maxey is extremely talented, New York should have a better defensive game plan against him. With the lack of a strong defensive guard, the franchise had to drop on screens which allowed Maxey to activate himself from the 3-point line. Going into Game 6, the Knicks should look to play tight on the star guard and possibly have Miles McBride play a lot more minutes and tighter on Maxey going forward.

Despite the loss, the Knicks still have a great chance to win this series. Still, they will need to do these three things in Game 6 if they want to see the second round.