Knicks win ninth straight, take 2-0 series lead on Cavaliers - ESPN

NEW YORK — Josh Hart scored a playoff career-high 26 points, Jalen Brunson had 19 points and 14 assists, and the New York Knicks moved halfway to their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999 by beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 109-93 on Thursday night.

Mikal Bridges also scored 19 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 18 points and 13 rebounds for the Knicks, who won their ninth straight game. That's the NBA's longest postseason winning streak since the Boston Celtics won 10 straight on their way to the 2024 championship.

Two nights after rallying from a 22-point deficit in the fourth quarter, the Knicks made sure they would be in control late with an 18-0 run in the third quarter that gave them a 71-53 lead. Fans chanted «Knicks in four! Knicks in four!» in the final minute, long after the starters had gone to the benches.

Donovan Mitchell scored 26 points and James Harden had 18 for the Cavaliers, who will have to climb out of a 2-0 deficit for the second straight round. Only two teams in NBA history have overcome multiple 2-0 deficits in a single postseason — the 2020-21 Milwaukee Bucks (won title) and the 2020-21 LA Clippers (lost in West finals).

The Cavs host Game 3 on Saturday.

The Knicks are in the Eastern Conference finals for the second straight year but haven't played for the championship since losing to the San Antonio Spurs in 1999. They became the 13th team in NBA history to win nine straight games in a single playoff run; of the previous 12, only the 2011-12 San Antonio Spurs failed to make the Finals.

Brunson scored 38 points and led the Game 1 comeback. He had only two points in the first half Thursday before making the first basket of the run that broke open the game.

Hart burned a Cavaliers defensive