For 40 minutes on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden, it appeared that the Cleveland Cavaliers would win the opening game of the 2026 Eastern Conference Finals. The Cavaliers were in complete control and had a 93-71 lead.
However over the last seven minutes and 52 seconds, the Cavaliers offense struggled mightily and simply could not stop a surging Knicks squad, which delivered an amazing comeback. The Knicks outscored the Cavaliers 30-8 over the last seven minutes and 52 seconds. Then in overtime, the Knicks dominated the five minutes of action, as they outscored the Cavaliers 14-3 en route to a 115-104 win.
What we have seen over the last 48 hours is riveting basketball to say the least. There have been two overtimes in the opening games of the Conference Finals, something that has never happened before. On Monday night in Oklahoma City, it what was possibly the best game that Victor Wembanyama ever played, as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 122-115 in double overtime.
In the Knicks win over the Cavaliers, all five of the New York starters reached double digits in points. Point guard Jalen Brunson of New Brunswick, New Jersey was the New York star as he scored 38 points, and was completely electric down the stretch. Meanwhile, small forward Mikal Bridges of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania had 18 points, center Karl-Anthony Towns of Edison, New Jersey had 13 points, power forward OG Anunoby of London, England had 13 points, and small forward Josh Hart of Silver Spring, Maryland had 13 points. Towns had the double-double as he had 13 rebounds.
