CJ McCollum leads a late rally as the Hawks stun the Knicks 107-106 to tie their series at 1-1

NEW YORK (AP) — CJ McCollum scored 32 points and the Atlanta Hawks rallied to stun the New York Knicks 107-106 on Monday night, tying their first-round playoff series at one game apiece.

McCollum led a late surge that was almost for naught when he missed two free throws with 5.6 seconds remaining. The Knicks rushed the ball up the court without any timeouts left, but Mikal Bridges missed a jumper as time expired.

“It’s a long game,” McCollum said. “You’ve got to play to zero.”

The Hawks had trailed the whole second half and were down 12 after three quarters. Atlanta chipped away and a basket by McCollum gave the Hawks a 101-100 lead — their first of the series in the second half — with 2:09 to play. He made another for a three-point lead, and after Jalen Brunson tied it with a 3-pointer, McCollum answered with another jumper to make it 105-103 with 33 seconds to play.

Jonathan Kuminga added 19 points off the bench and Jalen Johnson scored 17, including a basket with 10 seconds left for a four-point lead for the No. 6 seeds, who host Game 3 on Thursday.

Brunson had 29 points for the Knicks and Karl-Anthony Towns added 18.

The Knicks are trying to reach the second round for a fourth straight season, their longest stretch since the 1991-92 to 1999-2000 seasons, and seemed well on their way.

“This is a game we should have won,” New York's Josh Hart said. “In the playoffs you can’t give away games.”

The Knicks had been 40-1 in the postseason since the advent of the shot clock in 1954-55 when leading by 12 or more after three quarters. The only loss was when Reggie Miller scored 25 points in the fourth for Indiana in Game 5 of the 1994 Eastern Conference finals.

Towns, who had four points in the first half, scored 14 in the third quarter as the Knicks extended the lead to 78-64. They were still ahead by eight with under five minutes remaining.

But their young players who sparked the Hawks' surge after the All-Star break finally made some plays before McCollum — ignoring profane jeers after he and Jose Alvarado went nose-to-nose and were each given technical fouls in the third quarter — then closed it out.

McCollum was acquired from Washington in the January trade for Trae Young, the Hawks star who was a former playoff villain at Madison Square Garden. He filled the role perfectly Monday, outplaying Brunson in the second half and stealing a game that looked lost.

Hart had 15 points, 13 rebounds and six assists.

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New York Knicks guard Jose Alvarado, right, argues with Atlanta Hawks guard CJ McCollum (3) during the second half in Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series, Monday, April 20, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Knicks guard Josh Hart (3) falls as he attempts to drive past Atlanta Hawks guard CJ McCollum (3) during the first half in Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series, Monday, April 20, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) blocks Atlanta Hawks guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (7) during the first half in Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series, Monday, April 20, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) drives past Atlanta Hawks forward Mouhamed Gueye (18) during the first half in Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series, Monday, April 20, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Atlanta Hawks forward Jonathan Kuminga (0) attempts to drive past New York Knicks guard Jordan Clarkson (00) during the first half in Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series, Monday, April 20, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Knicks guard Miles McBride (2) drives past Atlanta Hawks guard CJ McCollum (3) during the first half in Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series, Monday, April 20, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

NEW YORK (AP) — Jalen Brunson sparked one of the NBA's greatest postseason comebacks, a rally from a 22-point deficit in the fourth quarter, and finished with 38 points as New York beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 115-104 in overtime on Tuesday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals.

After a record-setting run through the first two rounds, the Knicks were going nowhere for 40 minutes against the Cavs, trailing 93-71 with 7:52 to play. But Brunson relentlessly attacked James Harden to spark an 18-1 run that made it a ballgame, and he tied it at 101-all on a basket with 19 seconds remaining in regulation.

Before that, Brunson said the message for the Knicks was just to finish strong so they would have momentum for Game 2, even if they lost the opener.

“Just keep fighting,” he said. “Keep chipping away. We’re not going to get it back in one possession.”

The Knicks then opened overtime with a 9-0 run as a delirious crowd in Madison Square Garden danced and screamed in the aisles. The Knicks moved within three wins of their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999.

Mikal Bridges added 18 points and three Knicks scored 13, including OG Anunoby, who came on late after struggling most of the way in his return after missing two games with a strained right hamstring.

Donovan Mitchell scored 29 points for the Cavaliers, who seemed well on their way to a third straight road win before their late collapse. The Knicks outscored them 44-11 after their 93-71 lead.

“We played great basketball tonight for three quarters. Unfortunately, the fourth quarter — they dominated us in the fourth quarter,” Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said.

The Knicks won their eighth straight game and will host Game 2 on Thursday.

The Knicks had outscored Atlanta and Philadelphia by a combined 194 points, the largest margin ever through a team’s first 10 postseason games. But after not playing since May 10, when they finished their second-round sweep of the 76ers, the Knicks misfired most of the night, looking like the rust hurt more than the rest helped.

They were 4 for 23 on 3-pointers through three quarters and then had a horrible start to the fourth. But a year after coughing up a 14-point lead in the final minutes of regulation and losing to Indiana in OT in Game 1 of the conference finals on their home court, the Knicks found their offense just in time.

“But it was our defense that has always been special in these playoffs and that has carried us in this playoffs, that showed up in the fourth quarter and in overtime,” Karl-Anthony Towns said. “It allowed us to be sitting here with a win against a really great team.”

The only bigger fourth-quarter playoff comeback in the last 30 years was when the Clippers rallied from 24 down to beat Memphis in Game 1 in 2012.

“That can’t happen. But it did," Mitchell said. "We play in two days. We can’t sit here and let it kill our momentum, kill what we’ve been doing. It’s not a good loss.”

The Knicks came from 20 points behind three times last year in the postseason. Those were their largest comebacks on record since 1969-70, when they won their first of two NBA titles.

Evan Mobley had 15 points and 14 rebounds for the Cavs. Harden also scored 15 points, but was just 1 for 8 on 3-pointers and had more turnovers (six) than field goals (five).

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New York Knicks' Jalen Brunson, bottom, drives past Cleveland Cavaliers' James Harden during the second half of Game 1 in the Eastern Conference finals NBA basketball playoffs series Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

New York Knicks' Og Anunoby, left, fouls Cleveland Cavaliers' Jarrett Allen (31) as he drives to the basket during the first half of Game 1 in the Eastern Conference finals NBA basketball playoffs series Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) shoots over Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden, left, during the second half of Game 1 in the Eastern Conference finals NBA basketball playoffs series, Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, top right, brings his arm down on New York Knicks guard Josh Hart, left, during the second half of Game 1 in the Eastern Conference finals NBA basketball playoffs series, Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York Knicks' Jalen Brunson (11) moves around the Cleveland Cavaliers defense during the first half of Game 1 in the Eastern Conference finals NBA basketball playoffs series Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)