Knicks rally from 22 points down to stun Cavs in NBA East finals opener
New York's Jalen Brunson drives around James Harden and Sam Merrill in the Knicks' overtime victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers in game one of the NBA Eastern Conference finals (Sarah Stier) The New York Knicks, fueled by 38 points from Jalen Brunson, erased a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit to stun the Cleveland Cavaliers 115-104 in overtime Monday in game one of the NBA Eastern Conference finals. The Knicks looked done for when they trailed 93-71 with 7:52 left in regulation. But Brunson spearheaded an 18-1 New York run and banked in a floater to tie it at 101-101 with 19.
3 seconds left in regulation. When Cleveland's Sam Merrill missed a three-pointer they went to the extra session -- in which the Knicks scored the first nine points. Brunson admitted he did not know how the Knicks had pulled off the sensational comeback.
"I don't have an answer for you," he told broadcaster ESPN. "We got some stops. We kept fighting, kept believing, just kept chipping away.
"They were playing great basketball and we just found a way. " Mikal Bridges added 18 points, and OG Anunoby, back from a two-game injury absence, was one of three Knicks players with 13. Donovan Mitchell scored 29 points to lead the Cavaliers and James Harden added 15.
The Knicks will have a chance to double their lead in the best-of-seven series when they host game two on Thursday. The winner of the series will face either the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder or San Antonio Spurs in the championship series. The Spurs, fueled by a 41-point performance by Victor Wembanyama, beat the Thunder in double-overtime in game one of the Western Conference finals.