SAN ANTONIO (AP) — New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson was neither offended nor frustrated when the San Antonio Spurs began intentionally fouling him in the first quarter of Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Friday night.
While he did go 3 of 6 on free throws in the opening quarter, the Hack-a-Mitch strategy inspired Robinson and the rest of the Knicks.
“It means a lot when I ruin their strategy, but I mean, it seems like they just want me off the court,” Robinson said. “So, in my eyes, I feel like I’m a threat.”
Was he ever.
Robinson, Landry Shamet and the Knicks' role players came up huge as New York held on to beat the San Antonio Spurs 105-104 for their 13th straight postseason victory and a 2-0 lead in the finals.
Karl-Anthony Towns led the Knicks with 21 points, but said in a postgame interview with ESPN that those players, along with the likes of Deuce McBride and Jose Alvarado, were the MVPs of the game.
“Our team play had got us here," Towns said.
After Towns went to the bench with foul trouble and fellow All-Star Jalen Brunson was resting, Knicks coach Mike Brown went to his reserves and they rewarded him with a big burst.
“Somebody is always there,” Brown said.
“Again, a lot of contributions from a lot of guys, and that’s why you like having a team, because it could be anybody’s night on any given night. Our guys don’t care. They sacrifice for one another and we found a way to get a win.”
New York's bench accounted for 27 points and 10 rebounds, and Robinson defended Victor Wembanyama when the Spurs' star missed a jumper that would have won the game.
“Our effort, it’s been crazy,” Robinson said. “We just came out there just fighting, you know, talking to each other. Communication, that’s been key for us.”
Clinging to a four-point lead late in the third quarter, the Knicks bridged the third and fourth quarters on an 11-3 run fueled by Robinson, Alvarado, McBride, Shamet and starting guard Mikal Bridges.
Shamet finished with 13 points, Robinson had seven, McBride added five and Alvardo had two. Shamet's 3-pointer put New York ahead 87-75 a minute into the fourth quarter.
Bridges had four points, one assist and one rebound during the run and helped the Knicks hold the Spurs to 1-of-5 shooting.
“I think started just defensively getting stops,” Bridges said. “I think that’s the biggest thing, us getting stops and getting out. Just him giving me confidence to try to make the right play.”
Robinson did the same.
After thwarting the Hack-a-Mitch strategy in the first quarter, Robinson sealed the victory in the final minute with two defensive stands against Wembanyama.
With the game tied at 104, Wembanyama missed a 17-footer with 30 seconds remaining with Robinson defending. Wembanyama then missed a 20-footer with two seconds remaining and the Spurs trailing by one point.
“In my mind, I was just like, defend without fouling,” Robinson said. “So, that was kind of like how it went. Just great contest, and just kind of how it went.”
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San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama walks off the court as time expires during the second half of Game 2 of the NBA Finals basketball series as New York Knicks guard Landry Shamet (44), guard Josh Hart (3), and center Mitchell Robinson (23) celebrate, Friday, June 5, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
The New York Knicks celebrate after Game 2 of the NBA Finals basketball series against the San Antonio Spurs, Friday, June 5, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
NEW YORK (AP) — The World Cup, a 48-team, 104-match behemoth kicking off next week across 16 cities in the United States, Mexico and Canada, presents an unprecedented security challenge, with more countries, games and a larger footprint than ever before.
It also comes against the backdrop of the U.S. and Israel’s war with Iran, mounting political violence in President Donald Trump's orbit and growing fears of artificial intelligence-fueled disruptions, creating a complex threat environment for authorities.
Overseeing the sprawling security apparatus is a legion of federal agencies, state and local police departments and private entities. Their responsibilities range from securing stadiums and fan zones to escorting teams and protecting dignitaries.
Their tools include hunter drones that can shoot nets over objects in restricted airspace, bag-inspecting robot dogs, giant X-ray trucks and thousands of AI-powered cameras trained on public spaces soon to be thronged by fans.
In the U.S., it’s “78 Super Bowls over 39 days,” said Andrew Giuliani, executive director of Trump’s World Cup task force, which is overseeing the multiagency effort.
“There’s never been a summer like this in American history from a security angle,” said Giuliani, son of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
“We’re as prepared as we can be.”
The tournament has the same high-level federal security designation as the Super Bowl, just below a presidential inauguration or a national political convention, ensuring federal, state and local coordination. It coincides with other major events linked to the 250th anniversary of America's founding.
So far, Giuliani said, there are no credible threats.
The Department of Homeland Security, focused on Trump’s immigration enforcement crackdown and hit by a funding lapse only recently resolved, estimates up 7 million people will visit the U.S. for the World Cup.
The U.S. Secret Service, under scrutiny after security breaches and attempts on Trump’s life, is in charge of protecting world leaders who show up to cheer on their countries. Trump has expressed interest in attending a match.
“I feel very comfortable where we’re at, and we feel like we have a zero-fail mission,” Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told Congress this week, noting that the Secret Service was understaffed by about 860 agents. “But it’s going to be complicated.”
Officials have indicated they are confident they can keep Trump safe because they will be integrating his usual security into the robust World Cup plan on days he may watch a match.
The FBI has spent two years developing its security plan, incorporating lessons from other major events such as the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and New Year’s Eve ball drop in New York and testing them at smaller ones, including last week’s Israel Day parade in the city.
"We prepare for the worst day,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Amit Kachhia-Patel in New York told The Associated Press. “And that’s how we go into any single event."
To help cover security costs, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has distributed $625 million to the 11 U.S. host cities. An additional $250 million is being directed toward tracking and neutralizing suspect drones.
The disbursement of those funds was held up by the department's funding delay, which the Republican administration has argued hindered security planning.
Others involved in the planning effort said the federal government could have played a more hands-on role even before the shutdown.
John Cohen, a former senior DHS official who has been briefing state leaders before the matches, said the government was largely absent from planning meetings last year and did not begin sharing threat intelligence with host regions until recently.
“With an event of this magnitude, one would expect the federal government would’ve played a more active role,” Cohen said. “It felt like a missed opportunity to showcase that collaboration.”
In January, thousands of officials involved in World Cup security gathered for exercises simulating crowd surges, vehicle attacks and mass shootings.
A month later, the U.S. and Israel launched a war with Iran.
“The security picture fundamentally changed,” said Stefano Ritondale, chief intelligence officer at Artorias, a defense intelligence company not involved in the security preparations. “There’s a major difference in preparing for a lone wolf radical who rams his car into a public place and a terrorist who is bankrolled by a foreign country we’re at war with.”
Among the greatest concerns are drones.
Since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022, drones have become a prominent weapon in conflicts including Russia’s war in Ukraine and Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
“If there is one threat that keeps me up at night, it is from drones,” said New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, whose department is partnering with the FBI on drone mitigation.
Drones are prohibited over stadiums and fan zones, and Kachhia-Patel said the FBI has a “full suite of options” to thwart incursions. They include agents monitoring the sky and a “variety of means” to safely down the devices, he said without elaborating.
Before this year’s World Cup, the growing sophistication of AI videos was a particular concern, with officials warning that state actors can harness the technology to sow misinformation and panic.
On match days, the FBI will activate joint operations centers in each host city, bringing together local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to monitor and investigate threats.
“If there’s a video that shows an explosion going off at a site, and it’s AI generated, we have people on the ground who can validate whether or not that’s true,” said Kachhia-Patel.
Some AI companies have pitched themselves to police departments in host cities, promising to comb through data and surveillance on game days to prevent threats, including unruly fan behavior.
“We know sports fanaticism around here in terms of the NFL and baseball to some extent, but nothing like international soccer,” said Jake Becchina, a police spokesperson in Kansas City, Missouri, which is hosting six matches.
The department has contracted with Peregrine Technologies, which promises to sift through police data and publicly available information such as team practice locations and the country affiliation of popular bars, to get ahead of possible conflict.
In Dallas, a recent $120 million tech upgrade will give local police body cameras capable of real-time translations, helping law enforcement communicate with international visitors soon to descend on the region.
Several drone detection and mitigation companies are joining efforts to help federal agencies secure the skies.
One of those companies, Fortem, has claimed to have signed a multimillion-dollar contract with DHS before the World Cup for an unusual drone mitigation strategy: quadcopters that can shoot nets at encroaching drones to trap them in midair. A spokesperson for DHS declined to discuss the contract.
Just as the teams will aim to perform their best on the pitch, Giuliani said the security planning was a unique chance to “show off American exceptionalism."
“If we do our job right,” Giuliani added, “nobody will be talking about security at the World Cup.”
Santana reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Alanna Durkin Richer in Washington contributed to this report.
Rows of desks fill the FBI's Joint Operations Center in New York, Thursday, June 4, 2026, ahead of the World Cup soccer tournament. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
FBI Special Agent in Charge Amit Kachhia-Patel, Mission Services Division, is interviewed in the agency's Joint Operations Center, in New York, Thursday, June 4, 2026, ahead of the World Cup soccer tournament. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
FBI Special Agent in Charge Amit Kachhia-Patel, Mission Services Division, walks through a portion of the agency's Joint Operations Center in New York, Thursday, June 4, 2026, ahead of the World Cup soccer tournament. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Temporary fencing with FIFA World Cup 2026 signage is set up outside SoFi Stadium, Friday, June 5, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Andrew Giuliani, head of the White House FIFA World Cup 2026 task force, shakes hands with journalists following a press briefing on World Cup security, Thursday, June 4, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
AT&T Stadium, where upcoming World Cup soccer matches are scheduled to be played, has its name covered by three gray tarps Monday, June 1, 2026, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Andrew Giuliani, head of the White House FIFA World Cup task force, speaks at a news briefing about World Cup security, Thursday, June 4, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
