Villanova alum Josh Hart enjoys another memorable night in Philly with Knicks

PHILADELPHIA — Josh Hart has been part of a lot of memorable victories at Wells Fargo Center going back to his days at Villanova. It’s hard to imagine he has ever impacted winning quite as much as he did Friday night. During the 29:35 Hart was on the floor, the Knicks outscored the 76ers by a whopping 46 points in their 128 92 blowout victory .

The reserve wing was all over the floor at both ends, doing everything possible to play a key role in this one sided win. “I thought Josh was fantastic all around, just everything: defense, playmaking, hustle,” coach Tom Thibodeau said after the Knicks improved to 3 0 since the OG Anunoby trade.

Hart had 10 points, 15 rebounds, six assists and a block. His plus 46 was the highest of any NBA player this season, according to StatsMuse. Jokingly asked about it by teammate Jalen Brunson, he said: “They staggered my minutes with you, so it was easy.” He later added: “That’s a good stat. But at the end of the day, you just got to focus on taking care of your role and stuff like that.

Sometimes, that stat is just circumstance, but it’s cool.” Hart does enjoy coming to Philadelphia and playing at Wells Fargo Center. For one, a lot of Knicks fans made the trip for the first meeting between the two rivals this season. Plus, he’s enjoyed so many great moments in the building. This was another one.

“I always got love for Philly and playing in this arena,” Hart said. “A lot of memories, good times. I don’t think I have too many losses here besides Creighton’s ass whipping they gave us. It’s always good to play here.” Hart’s biggest contribution came on the glass in the form of a season high 15 rebounds.

He’s always been one of the sport’s best rebounding guards, and he was particularly active in that area as the Knicks won the battle on the boards by 11. “Just try to go get the ball,” he said. “Obviously, [Isaiah Hartenstein] was wrestling with that monster [Joel Embiid] over there. So I was able to kind of swoop in and grab some and when I do that, play fast and get on the break.”.