N.B.A
By Stefan Bondy
Published on March 3, 2024
Updated March 3, 2024, 11:41 p.m. ET
CLEVELAND — A terrible moment turned into a courageous victory for the Knicks.
After Jalen Brunson suffered a game-winning knee injury in the first minute, later diagnosed as a left knee contusion based on negative X-rays, the Knicks got a triple-double and a masterpiece from Josh Hart to escape Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse with a 107-98 win -Victory on Sunday.
Brunson collapsed on the court and was initially listed as “questionable to return” with a sore knee, an update that changed to “will not return” in the third quarter.
The Knicks, who had already lost three starters due to injuries, took a big lead in the quarter and never relinquished it. They slipped for two games and remained in fourth place in the East.
“It's huge. “You see it, we're down four starters, they're down one starter,” Donte DiVincenzo said. “If you look at the matchups and what we're doing, we're tough.”
Donte DiVincenzo (right) and guard Miles McBride (2) celebrate the Knicks' win on Sunday night in the first half. AP
As DiVincenzo indicated, the surging Cavaliers were playing without Donovan Mitchell, who missed his second straight game with a knee injury.
They were also without injured sixth man Caris LeVert for the nationally televised contest.
So there was a lack of star power on both sides, and Hart rose to the occasion.
Not only did he provide the box score with 19 rebounds, 10 assists and 13 points in 45 minutes, Hart was also responsible for the two game-winning plays – a contested 3-pointer over the long Evan Mobley that gave the Knicks 1:36 a six-point lead before the end, then a steal on the Cavaliers' ensuing possession.
It was Hart's third triple-double of the season, all since January 30.
Josh Hart drives to the basket for the Knicks on Sunday night. David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
“Some guys get going by knocking down a shot. Honestly, the way I really get going is getting a defensive rebound and getting rebounds,” Hart said. “Now I feel like I’m getting into the game somehow. So that's part of it. And I'm feeling pretty confident right now. I've been working hard over the last two, three, four weeks, just getting back to basics, getting back into rotation. I felt like I shot the ball well today. Had a few of those – the shot clock games that I just had to throw up, but I get better into the swing of things just playing a little bit of toughness games.”
After his big 3-pointer against Mobley, Hart turned to the Cavaliers' bench and made a few comments. One was admiration for Mitchell's gold chain.
“I saw Donovan and that’s obviously my guy, and then I saw the necklace and was like, ‘Ooh! “That’s nice,” Hart said.
Cavaliers coach JB Bickerstaff said before the release that limiting Hart was a priority for him.
It did not work.
Jalen Brunson helps the court after injuring his knee Sunday night. AP
“He is the heart and spirit of this team, so our focus is to keep him out of the game and not let him make the rush plays, overwhelm us and get the Knicks going,” Bickerstaff said. “You have to keep him away from the boards because he handles falls extremely well and his team benefits from that.”
Miles McBride replaced Brunson and played the final 47-plus minutes. He ended up scoring 16 points – including the Dagger Trey with 33 seconds left.
DiVincenzo led all scorers with 28 points in 39 minutes.
It was the first meeting against the Cavaliers since November 1st, and the circumstances have changed. Cleveland entered Sunday second in the East and secured a top-notch defense during its winning streak.
Jalen Brunson suffered an injury in the first quarter of the Knicks' game against the Cavaliers on Sunday night. AP
The injury-plagued Knicks have struggled recently but still managed to hold on for Cleveland, the same place where they dominated the playoffs last year. The Cavaliers were crushed in that first-round series and carried a chip on their shoulders early in the season, especially against the Knicks.
But they did nothing about it on Sunday. The Cavs cut the deficit to three with 4:40 left, but the Knicks gave up just two points the rest of the way.
“If you are understaffed, the margin for error is low. So you have to play with great intensity and great concentration on every move. I’m proud of that,” Thibodeau said. “Those guys, we haven’t had our starting line in a long time, so add Jalen. But the guys that were in there got the job done.”
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