Knicks ride third-period explosion to 2-0 lead over Cavaliers

Josh Hart bounced back from a quiet series opener by scoring nine of the New York Knicks' 18 consecutive third-quarter points Thursday night, when the hosts took a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals by beating the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers 109-93.

Hart finished with 26 points in Game 2 for the Knicks, who overcame a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit in a 115-104 overtime win in Game 1 on Tuesday. Game 3 is scheduled for Saturday night in Cleveland.

Hart shot 10-for-21 -- including 5-for-11 from 3-point range -- and dished out seven assists on Thursday. He had just 13 points on Tuesday.

Karl-Anthony Towns (18 points, 13 rebounds) and Jalen Brunson (19 points, 14 assists) each had a double-double for the third-seeded Knicks, who have won nine straight games dating back to their loss to the Atlanta Hawks in Game 3 of a first-round series on April 23.

New York's Mikal Bridges scored 19 points while OG Anunoby added 14.

Donovan Mitchell put up 26 points while Jarrett Allen totaled 13 points and 10 rebounds for the fourth-seeded Cavaliers, who fell into a 2-0 hole for the second straight series. Cleveland outlasted the Detroit Pistons in seven games in the conference semifinals.

James Harden had 18 points while Evan Mobley scored 14 points for Cleveland, which shot just 38.8% (31-for-80) from the field -- including 25.7% (9-for-35) from beyond the arc -- and 68.8% (22-for-32) from the free-throw line.

Neither team led by more than six in the first half, when Hart and Anunoby combined on an 8-4 run to end the second quarter and give the Knicks a 53-49 lead at intermission.

Allen and Mitchell opened the third quarter with a basket apiece to tie the game for the final time before Brunson's 28-footer sparked the 18-0 run.

The Cavaliers were 0-for-7 from the field and 0-for-2 from the line while committing two turnovers during New York's surge, which ended with Hart draining a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 71-53 with 5:35 left.

The Knicks led 85-70 at the end of the quarter before the Cavaliers mounted their final comeback attempt by scoring the first eight points of the fourth. However, Anunoby hit a 3-pointer with 8:39 remaining and Cleveland got within single digits just once more.

New York led by as many as 19 down the stretch.

--Field Level Media