Brutal late-game decision ends Knicks' season

Despite finishing the night with 41 points, Brunson's blunder with the game and season on the line will be what many remember. The 26-year-old was a warrior all series long against Miami, though, averaging 31 points across the six games. 

New York trailed for most of the second half of Game 6 and found themselves down six points with under a minute to go in the final quarter. Because officials ruled that Gabe Vincent's inadvertent elbow to Brunson's jaw was a flagrant foul, the Knicks had a chance to get back into the game in earnest. 

Brunson drained both free throws off the flagrant foul and Josh Hart dropped in a layup on the ensuing possession, cutting the Heat lead to only a basket, 92-90. 

The Knicks' defense forced a tough miss from Jimmy Butler on the other end, but Brunson's poor decision late ended any hopes of a comeback. 

For the Heat, Butler and center Bam Adebayo led the way, the former finishing with 24 points, eight boards and four assists, the latter recording 23 points and nine rebounds. 

Butler has been the catalyst for Miami's insane run to the Eastern Conference Finals. After his 24-point performance on Friday, he became the first player in Heat franchise history to average 30 points through his first 10 postseason games, per ESPN Stats and Info. 

With the Game 6 win, the Heat became only the second eighth seed to reach the conference finals, joining the 1999 New York Knicks (who ultimately lost the title in five games to the San Antonio Spurs). 

Incredibly, the Heat are now just four wins away from the NBA Finals. Miami will take on the winner of Sunday's Game 7 matchup between the Philadelphia 76ers and Boston Celtics. 

Game 1 of the conference finals will be on Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. ET in either Boston or Philadelphia.