Towns scores 30 points as hot-shooting Knicks overwhelm Hawks 121-105 and await Brunson's return

ATLANTA (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns had 30 points and 11 rebounds, and the hot-shooting New York Knicks took command with 40 points in the second period and beat the Atlanta Hawks 121-105 on Saturday.

OG Anunoby scored 24 points and Mikal Bridges added 20 for the Knicks, who solidified their hold on third place in the Eastern Conference.

The Knicks made 15 of 29 3-pointers and overall were good on 53.6% of their shots from the field (45 of 84).

Trae Young scored 16 points for Atlanta while setting the team record for assists in a season. The Hawks are now locked into the play-in tournament, with the Milwaukee Bucks clinching a playoff spot after Atlanta's third straight loss and fifth in six games.

All-Star point guard Jalen Brunson, who practiced with the Knicks on Friday for the first time since spraining his right ankle on March 6, missed his 15th consecutive game. He participated in pregame warmups.

“He's very close,” coach Tom Thibodeau said before the game. “When he's ready, we'll know.”

The Knicks are 9-6 since Brunson was hurt in a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Knicks: The Knicks outscored Atlanta 40-22 in the second quarter to lead 78-53 at halftime.

Hawks: Young had nine assists and passed Doc Rivers' team record of 823 assists in the 1986-87 season. Young leads the NBA with 11.6 assists per game. He began the game tied with Rivers' single-season record and claimed the mark with a first-quarter pass that set up a dunk by Mouhamed Gueye. Young also recorded his 500th career steal in the first half.

The Knicks led 51-41 before stretching the lead to 25 points with a 15-0 run. Anunoby's 3-pointer capped the run for a 66-41 lead.

The Knicks' 78 first-half points are the most allowed by Atlanta before halftime this season.

Each team plays again on Sunday. Atlanta hosts Utah while the Knicks host Phoenix.

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New York Knicks guard Cameron Payne (1) drives to the basket against Atlanta Hawks guard Caris LeVert (3) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, April 5, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik Rank)

New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby (8) shoots over Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik Rank)

New York Knicks forward Mikal Bridges (25) attempts to pass the ball over Atlanta Hawks forward Onyeka Okongwu (17) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik Rank)

New York Knicks forward MarJon Beauchamp (14) defends against Atlanta Hawks guard Caris LeVert (3) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik Rank)

New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) attempts a basket past Atlanta Hawks forward Onyeka Okongwu (17)during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik Rank)

New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby (8) attempts a basket against Atlanta Hawks guard Terance Mann (14) and forward Dominick Barlow (0) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik Rank)

New York Knicks forward Precious Achiuwa, right, attempts a basket over Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik Rank)

New York Knicks forward Mikal Bridges (25) dribbles the ball past Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels (5) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik Rank)

New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) handles the ball against Atlanta Hawks forward Mouhamed Gueye (18) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik Rank)

NEW YORK (AP) — States across the country saw steep drops in the number of people covered by the Affordable Care Act over the past year, with Ohio and Oklahoma each losing nearly one-third of enrollees, according to new federal data that provides the first complete 50-state breakdown of sharp enrollment declines following the January expiration of enhanced subsidies.

The data, posted in late June by the Trump administration and first reported on by The Associated Press, reveals how changes in each state’s insured population led to around 2.6 million fewer Americans having Obamacare plans in February compared with the same time last year.

It captures not only how many people signed up for or were automatically reenrolled in plans in 2026, but how many paid their first monthly premiums to keep coverage, according to Cynthia Cox, a vice president and director of the ACA program at the healthcare research nonprofit KFF, who reviewed the dataset. She said it accounts for people who were retroactively removed from coverage after a nonpayment grace period ended.

“This is the first time we’ve seen state-level data that shows how much ACA marketplace enrollment truly fell,” Cox said. “It’s in line with our expectations, but it does show a very steep drop in the number of people with ACA coverage.”

Health analysts have kept a close eye on changes in ACA enrollment since the expiration of so-called enhanced premium tax credits caused many Americans’ monthly health insurance fees to double or triple, forcing some to forgo coverage entirely. The subsidies had been at the center of a bitter fight in Congress last fall, with Democrats and some Republicans calling for their renewal.

Health insurance costs have been rising across ACA and other health insurance programs at a time when voters in the approaching November elections say affordability is among their top concerns.

In a report released last week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services suggested the significant drop in enrollment this year could be attributed to a federal crackdown on fraudulent or “phantom” enrollment. But analysts have said it was more likely related to the Jan. 1 expiration of federal subsidies, and other changes, including tightened requirements on which immigrants could access subsidized plans.

Mike Rhoads, deputy commissioner of life and health at the Oklahoma Insurance Department, cited a crackdown on fraudulent enrollments as one reason ACA enrollments dropped. But he said in his state, the biggest factor was money.

“It's all about affordability at this point in time,” he said in an interview, adding that he expects the problem to continue with insurers forecast to raise rates again next year.

An AP analysis of the data finds that Ohio and Oklahoma each saw a more than 32% decline in ACA enrollment over the past year. They lost larger shares of their covered populations than any other state.

Following closely behind, and losing more than a fourth of their enrollees, were Arizona, South Carolina, Minnesota, Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Louisiana and Missouri.

Florida, a state that relies highly on ACA insurance in part because it did not expand Medicaid and is home to many gig workers and entrepreneurs, still has more residents in the marketplace than any other state, at nearly 4 million. But it also saw the highest number of enrollees drop coverage this year — around 443,000.

The data doesn’t show whether people who dropped ACA health insurance this year found coverage elsewhere, and chances are some of them became insured through employer plans or other options. But Cox said most people who left the marketplace are likely going without insurance, because it is typically a “place of last resort” to get health coverage for people who aren’t eligible elsewhere.

Some of the states that saw the largest enrollment declines were the same ones that saw the biggest enrollment gains after the federal government introduced enhanced subsidies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cox said that isn’t surprising, because those states likely had large numbers of people who enrolled only because the enhanced subsidies made coverage much more affordable.

Only one state saw an increase in its covered population. New Mexico gained some 14% more enrollees in the government health insurance program compared with the same time last year. It was the only state in the nation that fully replaced the lost federal subsidies using its own funds.

About three in five states use the federal marketplace Healthcare.gov, while the rest operate their own state-based marketplaces for ACA insurance.

The new data shows that federal marketplace states overall lost larger shares of enrollees than states with state-based exchanges.

One reason for that could be that many states with their own marketplaces took steps to offset costs for their residents when the enhanced subsidies expired in January.

New Mexico, which saw double-digit enrollment gains, is the most extreme example of that. In a special legislative session last fall, lawmakers in the state approved a plan to use state funds to make up for the missing subsidies through mid-2026. In March, the state’s governor signed a bill to continue making up the difference through mid-2027.

Tim Fowler, public relations coordinator for the New Mexico Health Care Authority, said the state's rise in enrollment was due to its healthcare affordability fund that replaced the subsidies.

“In New Mexico, we believe health insurance should protect people against medical debt, not cause it,” he said.

FILE - Insurance agent Maria Collado, center right, works with clients at a shopping mall kiosk run by Las Madrinas de los Seguros, Spanish for "The Godmothers of Insurance," at a shopping center in Miami, Dec. 5, 2023. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)

FILE - The healthcare.gov website is seen on Dec. 14, 2021, in Fort Washington, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)