Most New Yorkers celebrated peacefully after the Knicks clinched their first NBA championship in over 50 years, with jubilant fanfare across the city. While the celebrations were largely orderly, the NYPD reported pockets of violence throughout the night, mostly in Midtown, Manhattan.
Police said 63 people were arrested during and after the historic Knicks game, while 10 cops were injured as a bus was set ablaze and gunfire erupted in Times Square.
While New York Knicks fans took over New York on Saturday after their beloved team won the NBA championship, the excitement sent some revelers spiraling into violence.
The NYPD’s extensive security perimeter that surrounded Madison Square Garden seemed to keep most of the turmoil at bay until around 10:30 p.m. when crazed fans gathered in the roadway on 9th Avenue and 34th Street. Police and the large crowd got into a shoving match as authorities attempted to clear the roadway. Tensions ran high with things swiftly escalating as police tackled several people to the ground, leaving one cop with a bloody nose during the scuffle.
This only sent the mob into further outrage. They hurled bottles of alcohol and other liquid at police, forcing them to deploy the SRG unit in full riot gear. With batons raised, they pushed the horde toward 10th Avenue — but not without a fight. The Knicks fans, made up mostly of teens and young adults, attempted to halt the police by throwing traffic cones and other debris their way. Things reached a boiling point when the crowd climbed a police vehicle and smashed its windows.
This proved to be just the start of the night.
“During the Knicks game last night, large crowds of unruly fans began to form at various places north of Madison Square Garden between Fifth and Ninth Avenues. It is estimated that those crowds ultimately grew to tens of thousands of people. As the game progressed and then following the game, the crowds became increasingly destructive, and there were many incidents of incredibly reckless and dangerous behavior,” the NYPD said in a statement.
After the historic win, crowds gathered around the city, climbing street signs, traffic lights, and cars. In Times Square, the rabid fans commandeered school buses being used to transport people to MetLife Stadium for the World Cup. Authorities say the masses demolished these buses, even sitting one ablaze. All in all, police say five of these buses were destroyed.
At just after 2 a.m., a 17-year-old boy was shot in the left foot on 43rd and Broadway. Cops say they themselves had to rush the boy to hospital because an ambulance could not make it through the dense crowds. Three persons of interest are being questioned for this incident and a firearm was recovered. Five other slashings and stabbings occurred throughout the city.
The NYPD also say that five police vehicles were badly damaged after fans took baseball bats to the cars while private vehicles were also demolished.
In addition to on foot riot officers, the department’s mounted horse unit was also deployed, but they too were pelted with objects. Throughout the night and early morning, police report that 63 people were arrested in relation to the Knicks game for charges including assault on a police officer, criminal possession of a weapon, including a gun, criminal mischief, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, and obstruction of governmental administration.
The NYPD also stated that ten cops were injured, including one who was punched in the face and another who was struck with a glass bottle.
Photo by Dean Moses
