Knicks Take 2-0 Series Lead Over Cavaliers in East Finals

Josh Hart scored a playoff career-high 26 points, Jalen Brunson added 19 points and 14 assists, and the New York Knicks moved within two wins of their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999 with a 109-93 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.

Mikal Bridges also scored 19 points, and Karl-Anthony Towns posted 18 points and 13 rebounds for the Knicks, who extended their winning streak to nine games. That streak is the NBA’s longest postseason run since the Boston Celtics won 10 consecutive games en route to the 2024 title.

Hart shot 5-for-11 from three-point range and also dished out seven assists.

“Just a whale of a game from Josh,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said.

Two nights after rallying from a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit, the Knicks ensured late control with an 18-0 run in the third quarter that built a 71-53 lead. Fans chanted “Knicks in four! Knicks in four!” in the final minute, long after the starters had been pulled.

“In our mind it’s 0-0. We’ve got to win the next game. It’s the most important game of the year and that’s how we treat it,” Towns said.

Donovan Mitchell scored 26 points, and James Harden added 18 for the Cavaliers, who must climb out of a 2-0 series hole for the second consecutive round. Cleveland hosts Game 3 on Saturday.

“Nothing to hang our head about,” Mitchell said. “They protected home court, and we’ve seen this before so we’re going to go to Game 3.”

The Knicks have reached the Eastern Conference finals for the second consecutive season but have not played for the championship since losing to the San Antonio Spurs in 1999.

Brunson scored 38 points in the Game 1 comeback. He had just two points in the first half Thursday before scoring the first basket of the decisive run and finishing with a playoff career-high 14 assists.

Hart capitalized on a Cavaliers defensive strategy that appeared designed to leave him open from deep after he was benched during the Game 1 rally, playing only three minutes combined in the fourth quarter and overtime.

The forward had been shooting just 26.7% from three-point range. After his third consecutive miss early Thursday, he bit his jersey in frustration and bounced the ball hard three times. But he kept shooting.

“I knew I had to just keep shooting and if I did that I’d be good,” Hart said.

Mitchell started slowly with just seven points in the first half, reigniting questions that followed Game 1 about whether he was injured.

Cleveland cut the deficit to single digits with just under eight minutes remaining but squandered any chance to get closer with poor free-throw shooting, missing 10 attempts and finishing at 68.8%. The Knicks eventually stretched their lead to 19 points.