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Madison Square Garden is set to host its first NBA Finals game in more than 27 years Monday night, and the atmosphere around the building the day before was already electric.
According to ESPN, the last time the Garden hosted an NBA Finals game was June 25, 1999. Game 3 between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs will change that. Knicks players spent Sunday doing their best to stay focused despite the noise building around them.
Guard Jalen Brunson has been at the center of the Knicks' run to the Finals and figures to be central to how New York performs at home. The task for the team heading into Monday was managing the external energy without letting it become a distraction.
The series now shifts to New York with the city expecting what ESPN described as a madhouse inside the Garden on Monday night.
