Knicks steal Game 1 over Cavaliers

The New York Knicks opened the Eastern Conference finals with a 115-104 overtime win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday, May 19, after trailing by 22 points in the fourth quarter. NBA.com said New York was down 93-71 with 7:52 left before closing regulation and overtime on a 44-11 run. (nba.com) CBS Sports called it a historic comeback and said the 22-point rally was the largest in a conference finals game since 1997. Jalen Brunson led New York with 38 points, five rebounds, six assists and three steals, according to NBA.com. Donovan Mitchell scored 29 points for Cleveland, while Evan Mobley added 15 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks. (nba.com) CBS Sports and NBA.com both listed the final as 115-104 in overtime at Madison Square Garden. ### How big was the Knicks’ comeback? NBA.com said the Knicks trailed by 22 with under eight minutes left in the fourth quarter and forced overtime with a 30-8 push before winning by 11. CBS Sports said the comeback was the biggest in a conference finals game since 1997. NBA.com also said it was the first time in league history that both Game 1s of the conference finals went to overtime. (nba.com) Mike Breen, on the ESPN broadcast as quoted by NBA.com’s live recap, called it “one of the greatest comebacks in NBA history” as the Knicks completed the rally. Brunson told NBA.com after the game: “Find a way. We got some stops, kept fighting, kept believing. (nba.com) We just kept chipping away.” ### What changed late in the game? The final 7:40 decided the opener. NBA.com said Cleveland shot 22% the rest of the way after building the 93-71 lead, while New York’s defense created the stops it needed to extend possessions and cut into the margin. Brunson scored 17 of his 38 points across the fourth quarter and overtime, according to NBA.com’s recap and takeaways. (nba.com) Landry Shamet supplied one of the late shots that pushed the game away in overtime. NBA.com’s live blog said Brunson found Shamet for a 3-pointer that made it 110-101 with 1:49 left in overtime. (nba.com) ### Who were the central players? Brunson was the game’s top scorer and the focal point of New York’s late offense. NBA.com’s takeaways said the Knicks “had Jalen Brunson” when the game turned, and its postgame coverage credited him with leading the comeback. Mitchell carried much of Cleveland’s scoring load early, but NBA.com said his last basket came with 8:19 remaining in the fourth quarter, just before the Knicks’ surge gathered force. (nba.com) Mobley’s 15-point, 14-rebound line gave Cleveland interior production, but the Cavaliers could not hold the lead once the Knicks began stringing together stops. ### What does the series schedule look like now? CBS Sports said the Eastern Conference finals schedule continues with Game 2 on Thursday, May 21, at 8 p.m. Eastern on ESPN. The series then shifts to Cleveland for Game 3 on Saturday, May 23, and Game 4 on Monday, May 25. (nba.com) NBA.com said teams that win Game 1 of the conference finals have gone on to win the series 78.2% of the time in league history. The next confirmed step, though, is Thursday’s Game 2, with Cleveland trying to even the series and New York trying to take a 2-0 lead before the matchup moves to Ohio. (cbssports.com) (nba.com)