Buddy Hield's stunning second quarter sparks 76ers comeback

Philadelphia 76ers guard Buddy Hield. Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Buddy Hield's stunning second quarter sparks 76ers first-half comeback

By Sean Keane | Last updated 5/2/24

Buddy Hield had scored two points in the entire Knicks-Sixers series before Thursday. He had 17 in the first half of Game 6.

ANOTHER BUDDY HIELD 3⃣

He has 17 PTS going into halftime on TNT!#NBAPlayoffs presented by Google Pixel pic.twitter.com/gS2u3gZJSV
— NBA (@NBA) May 3, 2024

Hield went scoreless in Games 1 and 3, scored two points in Game 2 and didn't even see the court in Games 4 and 5. But the sharpshooter, who made 219 three-pointers this season, didn't show any rust when 76ers coach Nick Nurse called on him in the second quarter.

Buddy Hield has 4 3s in the 1st half #NBAPlayoffs presented by Google Pixel

PHI forces a Game 7 with a win on TNT pic.twitter.com/a5CtMDizbX
— NBA (@NBA) May 3, 2024

The former Three-Point Contest champion shot 5-for-7 from behind the arc in a 17-point second quarter, helping to swing the momentum in a game Philadelphia trailed by as many as 22 points in the first quarter.

Three-pointing shooting, specifically the shooting by Hield, was Philly's biggest advantage. They shot 9-for-21 in the second half, while New York was only 6-for-18 from deep.

Maybe Hield wasn't rusty. He was just conserving his energy until Philly was truly on the brink of elimination.

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