4 takeaways: Rested Knicks secure epic comeback win over Cavaliers in Game 1

Jalen Brunson got hot in the 4th quarter and the Knicks followed for a win over the Cavaliers in Game 1.

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NEW YORK —

Sometimes, the whole “rest vs. rust” thing plays out just like you might expect it to. Such was the case of Game 1 of

the Eastern Conference Finals

.

The New York Knicks hadn’t played in nine days, and the layoff seemingly killed the offensive rhythm that had them scoring more than 120 points per 100 possessions through the first two rounds of the playoffs. Whether it was rust or regression to the mean, they struggled for the first 40 minutes, scoring an anemic 71 points on their initial 82 possessions of the game.

But the Cleveland Cavaliers lacked rest, having played every other day for the last three weeks. They were the sharper team for those first 40 minutes.

And then things turned … dramatically.

The Knicks had the legs. More importantly, they had Jalen Brunson, who led the Knicks to

a 115-104 overtime victory

at Madison Square Garden on Monday. Brunson scored a game-high 38 points, with 17 of them (along with four of his six assists) coming as the Knicks outscored the Cavs 44-11 over

the final 12:45 of the game

Even with Brunson’s brilliance, the Knicks needed a couple of bounces to go their way. And they got them.

Prior to Monday …

The league was

1-521

this season when trailing by at least 20 points in the fourth quarter.

3-748

in the playoffs over the 30 years for which we have play-by-play data when trailing by at least 20 points in the fourth quarter.

The Cavs had won their last 22 games that they led by at least 10 points at any point in the game.

Here are some notes, quotes, numbers and film as the Knicks, miraculously, took a 1-0 series lead …

1. Brunson catches fire, burns Harden

At that point when the Knicks were down 22 with a little less than eight minutes left in regulation, Brunson was 7-for-19, including 0-for-5 from 3-point range.

He had some success attacking Jarrett Allen in the pick-and-roll in the first quarter, but the Cavs adjusted and that action became less fruitful.

In the fourth, he found a new target.

After James Harden went 1-for-2 from the line to push the Cavs’ lead to 22, Brunson called for a screen from OG Anunoby, who was being defended by Harden. Harden switched the screen, and Brunson drove by him and made a floater …

That was the first of eight straight possessions where the guy Harden was guarding (Anunoby or Mikal Bridges) set a screen for Brunson. The Knicks’ point guard rejected the screen and

beat Dean Wade for a tough bucket

once, but every other time, Harden gave Brunson the switch he wanted.

Harden did

block Brunson

on the second of those eight possessions, only for Karl-Anthony Towns to corral the loose-ball and find Landry Shamet for a second-chance 3-pointer. But otherwise, he couldn’t stop him. The Knicks scored on all eight possessions, a run capped by

a step-back 3-pointer

from Brunson (over Harden, of course) that cut the deficit to five with 3:30 left.

After a timeout, the Cavs started sending double-teams at Brunson. But that freed up his teammates, and Anunoby, Bridges and Shamet all hit 3-pointers to tie the game at 99 with less than a minute left.

Harden got a little revenge, isolating against Brunson and

giving the Cavs back the lead

on the next possession.

But once again, the Cavs freely allowed the Knicks to get the matchup they wanted. Harden switched onto Brunson, the Cavs didn’t send a double-team, and Brunson beat him again for another floater that tied the game with 19.3 on the clock.

Tie game, and the Cavs couldn’t answer.

2. Cavs go cold at the wrong time

Brunson caught fire at the right time, but a comeback only comes with success (or failure) on both ends of the floor. And over those final 12 minutes and 45 seconds, the Cavs scored a paltry 11 points on 24 possessions.

They had more turnovers (six) than field goals (four), shooting 2-for-7 inside the arc, 2-for-11 from 3-point range and just 1-for-4 from the free throw line.

The Cavs tried attacking Brunson and Towns, but the Knicks’ defense held up. Towns

blocked a Mitchell floater

. The Knicks allowed Evan Mobley to pop into space, and he missed some open 3s. The isolation step-backs for Harden and Donovan Mitchell weren’t falling.

“This can happen when you get a little fatigued,” Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said afterward, “I think [the ball] just stopped moving. We were pinging the ball all over the place, great ball movement, and it just got a little stagnant.”

When asked about Harden repeatedly getting beat by Brunson, Mitchell put the responsibility for the collapse on the whole group.

“We still had the opportunity on the other end to take advantage,” he said. “And we didn’t. It’s not just on one person.”

3. Shamet is a spark

The Knicks’ starting lineup had been good through the first two rounds, but they also had the No. 1 bench in the playoffs and were at their best with reserves on the floor. And in Game 1, it was one particular reserve that played a big role in the fourth-quarter comeback.

With 7:52 left, Anunoby checked in for Mitchell Robinson, but Knicks coach Mike Brown left Landry Shamet on the floor with four starters (all except Josh Hart).

Shamet was guarding Mitchell, and after Brunson’s first isolation bucket against Harden got the comeback started, he made a huge play on the other end of the floor.

First, he stayed in front of a Mitchell drive, forced him to pick up his dribble, and stayed down on a pump fake. Then, when Mobley beat Anunoby on a cut, Shamet slid over and drew a charge …

Shamet got another big stop in overtime when Mitchell tried to beat him one-on-one …

Mitchell went scoreless over the last 12:45, shooting 0-for-5. Shamet, meanwhile, scored nine points in the comeback, draining all three of his 3-point attempts, with

the last one

tying the game with 44.3 seconds left in regulation.

4. Out and in, in and out

Though that 3-pointer to tie was a great look (thanks to one of those double-teams on Brunson), it was little off the mark. But after bouncing around the rim, it rolled in.

After Harden and Brunson traded isolation buckets, the Cavs had one more chance to win the game in regulation.

Harden again targeted Brunson via a Sam Merrill screen. Brunson hedged, Bridges stayed with the ball, and Merrill (42% from beyond the arc this season) was open for a pick-and-pop 3.

The shot went in … On ESPN, Mike Breen said “Ba…”

And then it rolled out.

The Knicks were still alive. The Cavs were out of gas.

On one end, out and in. On the other, in and out.

The Cavs will try to recover in Game 2 on Thursday (

8 p.m. ET, ESPN

).

* * *

John Schuhmann has covered the NBA for more than 20 years. You can e-mail him

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