Knicks Steal Game One In The Land

In Cleveland last Saturday afternoon in the opening game of the playoffs, the New York Knicks won the first game of a series on the road for the first time since 1999, which was also the last time they made the NBA Finals. The Knicks, the #5 seed, now have a 1-0 series lead over Cleveland, the #4 seed in this best of seven game series. Knicks ironman Julius Randle returned from a two-week injury at the end of the regular season to score 16 big points for the New York in the first half while their other All-Star caliber player, Jalen Brunson, spent most of the first half on the bench in foul trouble. 

Those roles reversed slightly in the second half where Brunson scored 21 of his team high 27 points. Randle finished second in scoring with 19 points and 10 rebounds. With Randle securing the biggest rebound off the offensive glass in the final seconds, up two, to secure the win. Josh Hart had an integral contribution off the bench with 17 points and 10 rebounds and put the Knicks up for good with a three with 1:49 remaining after Cleveland took a one-point lead after Knicks had led all game. Cleveland guard Donovan Mitchell finished with a game high 38 points.

Game 2 took place Tuesday night back in Cleveland. Ex-Knicks coach Pat Riley said years ago that “the playoffs do not really begin until a team loses a home game.” At worst, the Knicks will come to Madison Square Garden Friday night for game 3 with the series tied at 1. At best, they could be up 2-0 putting the Cleveland Cavaliers in a big hole.

Said Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau, “if we’re thinking about game 1, that’s not going to help us in game 2. We got to think about game 2 and all the things we need to do better in order to give ourselves our best chance of winning.”

Sports Editor Andrew Rosario contributed to this article.