The NBA is one thing in the regular season and another when the Playoffs begin… and then there are the Christmas games that everyone wants to play and win. Probably, of the regular season, the closest thing to the Playoffs are usually the games that the NBA carefully chooses as the main menu for one of the most important days of the whole season. And they are usually not to be missed.
At Madison Square Garden, the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers staged a rehearsal of what could easily be a NBA Playoffs series. What happened on Thursday could be equivalent to a decisive game in that series. The Knicks won 126-124, but the victory could have belonged to the Cavs. In fact, during the third quarter and the beginning of the last, it seemed that this was going to happen, but the New Yorkers came back to give their excited fans a memorable victory.
The Knicks straightened out a bad start in the second quarter, as if they were still celebrating the night before Christmas. A 5-20 start for the Cavs, who were firing on all cylinders against a sluggish Knicks team. The game was tied in the second quarter to the point of going into the break at 60-58
The third quarter again belonged to Cleveland, a dominance that carried over into the start of the final period, when they led by as many as 17 points, 86-103, with 10 minutes remaining. From then on, there was a radical change in the game with Jalen Brunson very much the protagonist and especially with the contribution of Tyler Kolek who had his best game of the season. The comeback is the third largest in an NBA game since play-by-play has existed.
A three-pointer by Kolek put the Knicks within one, 116-117. Then Kolek himself influenced the game with a great defensive play against a penetration by Donovan Mitchell and a defensive rebound that Mikal Bridges converted into the 118-117 with 1:28 to go. The Knicks had completed their comeback.
A three-pointer from Brunson (121-119) and a tip-in from Towns gave the home side a good lead (123-119), shortly before a three-pointer from more than eight metres by Donovan Mitchell (125-124) with 2.4 seconds to go. A free throw by Towns, which he then missed, left the victory at Madison Square Garden. The Cup champion also won the Christmas game, which is not a title, but represents one of the most emblematic triumphs in the career of every NBA player.
Jalen Brunson finished with 34 points and 6/12 from three-point range, Jordan Clarkson was exceptional in the third quarter with 25 points, Tyler Kolek finished with 16 points and 4/5 from three-point range and Josh Hart, who injured his ankle, scored 15 points.
For the Cavaliers, above all, was Donovan Mitchell with 34 points, followed by Darius Garland with 20, Jaylon Tyson with 16 and Evan Mobley with 14. The Cavs snapped a two-game winning streak.
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