liveUpdated 59m agoNew York overturned a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit to take a 1-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals The Athletic NBA TeamMay 20, 2026 at 12:32 AM EDTJalen Brunson and the Knicks delivered a stunning finish at Madison Square Garden. Getty Images Knicks sting Cavaliers in New YorkThe Knicks have pinched Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Cavaliers after overtime at Madison Square Garden tonight.Cleveland made a slow start, hitting just 6 of 22 shots in the first quarter, but found its rhythm after that — leading by 22 points with 7:38 remaining.An 18-1 run driven by Jalen Brunson (38 points) brought New York back from the brink, to book an extra five minutes. Then in overtime, New York outscored Cleveland 14-3 to secure the victory. The Knicks lead the series 1-0, with Game 2 back at MSG on Thursday night. Share your views: live@theathletic.com Check out our live schedule this weekTakeaways: Knicks need Towns to score more Getty ImagesKarl-Anthony Towns had been rightfully celebrated for embracing the role of point-center — dishing the ball like a modern-day version of his idol, Magic Johnson, who also wore No. 32.The flip side of that was seen in his plunging shot totals. Entering Game 1 tonight, KAT had 55 field-goal attempts during the Knicks’ seven-game winning streak. He passed for 56 assists in those games. That’s right, he had more assists than shots.It changed tonight when Cleveland proved it is a more explosive offensive opponent than Atlanta or Philadelphia, before completely falling apart in the fourth quarter.But it was worth noting Towns ended up with five assists, four of them in the first half, while taking 14 shots, 10 in the second. He never had more than 11 field-goal attempts during the seven-game winning streak over the Hawks and Sixers, and eight or fewer in five of those games.A career 22.8 points-per-game scorer, Towns might need to shoot and score a bit more in this series if a trip to the NBA Finals is definitely to come to pass. Takeaways: Knicks’ lineup change flummoxed Cavs Getty ImagesThe Cavaliers could have essentially stopped playing basketball. They led by 22 points with seven to go in regulation and the Knicks could not score. Maintain the lead for another couple of minutes, and they could have literally taken 24-second violations on every possession until the final buzzer while still fending off the Knicks.But the Cavs could not get out of their own way. The defensive alignment that made the Knicks stumble out of the gate — the one with a center, Jarrett Allen, on Josh Hart — was no longer relevant with New York going to a five-out lineup to close. Jalen Brunson hunted James Harden and the Cavaliers, the same team that has suffered too many late-game breakdowns this postseason, added to the list.Takeaways: Loss will sting Cavs Imagn ImagesThis night is going to sit with the Cavaliers for a while. They were up 22 in the fourth quarter and then it all went awry. The series isn’t over but this puts Cleveland on the back foot. They nearly stole Game 1, which would have been a huge lift when they were two days removed from a Game 7 win and in a series where they don’t have home court advantage.Now they’ll have to hope they can take Game 2 — and they’ll have the weight of this collapse on their minds as they do it. It also hurts at a time when energy is at a premium for the Cavaliers, having played 14 games over the first two rounds. Cleveland expended a lot of it in Game 1 and it got them nothing, even on a night when Donovan Mitchell was excellent.Kenny Atkinson will have to figure out how to counter the Knicks’ big fourth-quarter innovation: seek and destroy James Harden on defense. He’ll either have to hide his star or bench him; one seems harder than the other but it’s not what you may think. The Cavaliers might want to run from their self-affixed motto that the lights were too bright in New York a few years ago, but they couldn’t Tuesday night.Takeaways: Brunson puts on his cape Imagn ImagesTonight was eerily similar to what happened at this stage last season, when the Indiana Pacers rattled off a comeback overtime victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals to steal one on the Knicks’ floor. Only this time, Jalen Brunson was Aaron Nesmith, Tyrese Haliburton and Rick Carlisle all rolled into one.The All-NBA guard continues to find impressive ways to take the Knicks to new heights. New York likely won’t shoot this bad again in the series and Brunson was able to still get them a victory.It’s just one game but this can swing a series, even if New York was expected to win it anyway. This had loss written all over it.That was until Brunson saved the day. Again. Where did Donovan Mitchell go? After Donovan Mitchell canned a 3 from the right wing at the 8:19 mark to put the Cavaliers up by 21 points in the fourth quarter, he completely disappeared.The Cavs star attempted four field goals the rest of the way and did not make a single one as Cleveland’s offense ran through James Harden and floundered. Spida finished with 29 points on 12-of-23 shooting with five rebounds, three assists and four turnovers in 41 minutes.Gilbert: ‘That’s as tough as it gets’Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert addressed Cleveland fans with a post on X:💬 “Cavs fans … that’s as tough as it gets. Hard to find anything good to say about blowing a 22-point lead in the fourth quarter on the road in the ECF. “But at the end of the day, it’s one game, and this team has proven over and over again that it can come back stronger than ever. Let’s get Game 2 Thursday night, and all of this will soon be a distant memory.”Stats behind Knicks’ incredible comeback Getty ImagesIf you watched the Knicks-Cavaliers Game 1 clash tonight, the numbers back up that you witnessed one of the all-time greatest comebacks in NBA playoff history.Consider the following:The Knicks had a 0.1 win probability at their lowest, per ESPN Analytics.Their 22-point comeback was the largest in a conference finals game since the start of play-by-play tracking.It was also the second-largest fourth-quarter comeback in the playoffs since 2000 and the largest playoff comeback in Knicks franchise history.Throw in the first time Game 1 in both the Eastern and Western Conference finals went to overtime and it’s been some 48 hours of basketball. What on earth do these four teams have in store for us come Game 2?Merrill stays hot Imagn ImagesSam Merrill was critical in the Cavaliers Game 7 win in Detroit Sunday night and he was still locked in for Game 1, scoring 12 points off the bench while shooting 3-of-8 from 3.He is an elite floor spacer and will continue to be a critical weapon for Cleveland throughout the series.Is OG Anunoby healthy? Getty ImagesOG Anunoby suffered a hamstring strain in Game 2 of the second round and after nine days of rest, he returned to the lineup and appeared a bit rusty and tentative.He was smoldering before his injury and tonight he went 2-of-9 from the field, scoring 13 points while shooting 1-of-6 from deep.Bridges comes up clutch again Wherever there’s a Knicks comeback, Mikal Bridges is sure to be involved.As the Knicks stormed back in the fourth quarter, he knocked down a couple of timely triples and then in overtime, he helped ice the game with a steal from behind against Max Strus.He finished with 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting with five boards.Déjà vu at Madison Square Garden.Mitchell looks ahead after Cavs’ painful lossOf 596 teams leading a playoff game by 22 points in the fourth quarter since 1997-98, the Cavaliers just become only the second to lose. As Donovan Mitchell just said: 💬 “We lost. We f---ing blew it. Alright, let’s run for Game 2.”Cleveland’s free-throw failure Getty ImagesIn the final six minutes, the Cavaliers got to the free-throw line twice – a stat that is difficult to fathom given Cleveland’s 22-point fourth-quarter lead.And in those trips, Cleveland could not take care of business. James Harden made one of two attempts, and Jarrett Allen missed both of his tries.Instead of closing out New York, the Cavaliers wasted their offensive possessions and opened the door for a historic comeback.Knicks’ fortunes from 3 reverse The Knicks started Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals 2-of-16 from 3-point range.Ironically, the 3 shooting stroke is what saved them in the end and fueled their furious fourth-quarter rally.New York made six of its last nine 3-pointers to end regulation, part of a 30-8 run to end regulation. This reminds me of a word that Walt “Clyde” Frazier loves to holster for a time like this:Serendipity.Mike Brown on that Knicks comeback from down 22 points with 7:38 remaining:💬 “I don’t know if I’ve seen that in a playoff game.”Brown made an adjustment Getty ImagesNotable during the Knicks’ unlikely comeback was Mike Brown’s decision to substitute Landry Shamet for Josh Hart.Shamet can hold his own on defense and allows the Knicks to play 5-on-5 on offense, rather than having Jarrett Allen ignore Hart.While this was not the entire reason for New York’s comeback, it was a very important element to consider moving forward.Not everyone reading this will understand, but Danhausen cursed the Cavs earlier today. Should’ve known this would happen.Bench Harden?Kenny Atkinson will have to figure out how to counter the Knicks’ big fourth quarter innovation: seek and destroy James Harden on defense. He’ll either have to hide his star or bench him. One seems harder than the other but it’s not what you may think.