New York Knicks mounted one of the most remarkable comebacks in NBA playoff history on Tuesday night, rallying from a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 115-104 in overtime in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals, News.Az reports, citing AP.
Jalen Brunson led the charge with 38 points, igniting the late surge after the Knicks trailed 93-71 with 7:52 remaining in regulation.
After dominating the first two rounds of the playoffs, New York appeared outmatched for most of the game before Brunson relentlessly attacked James Harden and sparked an 18-1 run that completely shifted momentum.
Brunson tied the game at 101-101 with 19 seconds left in the fourth quarter after what initially seemed destined to be a comfortable Cavaliers victory.
“Just keep fighting,” Brunson said when describing the team’s mindset during the comeback. “Keep chipping away. We’re not going to get it back in one possession.”
The Knicks carried that momentum into overtime, opening the extra period with a dominant 9-0 run as the crowd inside Madison Square Garden erupted in celebration. The victory moved New York within three wins of its first NBA Finals appearance since 1999.
Mikal Bridges added 18 points, while three Knicks players finished with 13 points, including OG Anunoby, who made an important late contribution after struggling through much of his return from a strained right hamstring that had sidelined him for two games.
For Cleveland, Donovan Mitchell scored 29 points as the Cavaliers appeared in control for most of the night before collapsing late. New York closed the game by outscoring Cleveland 44-11 after trailing by 22 points.
“We played great basketball tonight for three quarters. Unfortunately, the fourth quarter — they dominated us in the fourth quarter,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said afterward.
The Knicks extended their winning streak to eight games and will host Game 2 on Thursday.
Coming into the matchup, New York had outscored Atlanta Hawks and Philadelphia 76ers by a combined 194 points through its first 10 postseason games, the largest margin in NBA history at that stage of the playoffs. However, after not playing since May 10 following their second-round sweep of Philadelphia, the Knicks looked rusty for much of the game.
New York shot just 4-for-23 from three-point range through the first three quarters and continued struggling early in the fourth. But unlike last year’s conference finals opener, when they squandered a 14-point lead and lost in overtime to Indiana, the Knicks found their rhythm in time to complete the comeback.
“But it was our defense that has always been special in these playoffs and that has carried us in this playoffs, that showed up in the fourth quarter and in overtime,” said Karl-Anthony Towns. “It allowed us to be sitting here with a win against a really great team.”
The comeback marked the second-largest fourth-quarter rally in an NBA playoff game over the past 30 years, trailing only the Los Angeles Clippers overcoming a 24-point deficit against the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 1 of their 2012 series.
“That can’t happen. But it did,” Mitchell said. “We play in two days. We can’t sit here and let it kill our momentum, kill what we’ve been doing. It’s not a good loss.”
New York had already erased 20-point deficits three times during last year’s postseason, their biggest playoff comebacks since the 1969-70 season, when the franchise captured its first NBA championship.
Evan Mobley recorded 15 points and 14 rebounds for Cleveland. Harden also scored 15 points but struggled from long range, making just one of eight three-point attempts while committing six turnovers — more than his five made field goals.
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