Mikal Bridges has his Knicks moment with clutch Game 6

DETROIT — This was Mikal Bridges’ finest hour as a Knick.

He picked the perfect time to deliver his best game since the team traded all those first-round picks to acquire him.

After so many forgettable showings this year, he provided a night to remember.

Bridges poured in 25 points — his most of the series — on 11-for-16 shooting from the field along with four rebounds and three assists in the Knicks’ 116-113 Game 6 and series-clinching win over the Pistons on Thursday night at Little Caesars Arena.

His put-back tip-in tied the game at 113-113 with 35.1 seconds left in the game.

“Just trying to find a way to win, just being there,” Bridges said of the game-tying basket. “My coaches [have been] on me all year, all playoffs, to rebound, so just trying to do my best.”

In the five previous games this series, Bridges averaged just 14.4 points on rough 42.6 percent shooting from the field, often going missing for long periods of time.

But he came out aggressively Thursday night and made the Pistons pay when they doubled Jalen Brunson — especially with a nightmare showing from Karl-Anthony Towns, who finished with 10 points.

“Us playing fast, knowing the weapons we have, just try to be aggressive,” Bridges said. “They tried taking [Brunson] away, we gotta punish them sometimes when they try to deny him and let other guys play.”

Brunson’s game-winning 3-pointer will get all the plaudits.

But Brunson was quick to heap praise on Bridges.

“I wouldn’t be in that position without this man next to me, the way he played tonight,” Brunson said. “Obviously, everyone’s gonna say a lot about the last shot but throughout the game, the ups and downs of it, we all stay composed. The way he played, it was tremendous. I give a lot of credit to my teammates. None of this happens without them.”

Bridges posterized Cade Cunningham with an emphatic dunk on a fast break in the third quarter.

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It helped energize the Knicks to deliver by far their best third quarter of the series — outscoring the Pistons by 13 — before their rough start to the fourth quarter.

It’s rare to see Bridges, not often an above-the-rim player, deliver such a ferocious dunk.

He had just three dunks in the series before Game 6.

“It felt great,” Bridges said. “Wish I had been in front of our bench to see the reaction, [so] I could yell in front of their faces. It’s nice to see, getting back on defense, see those guys all running around jumping around [in celebration]. I love my teammates, man. I just go out there, try to make a play. I play for them.”