Knicks One Win From NBA Finals After Game 3 Rout

Knicks push Cavaliers to brink of historic sweep 

Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart fueled New York’s win as the Knicks stayed unbeaten for a month. Cleveland couldn’t overcome early turnovers and a hot start from New York.

 

Brunson leads Knicks to 121-108 win over Cavs, one victory from finals...

The New York Knicks are one win away from reaching the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999. They secured a 121-108 road win in Cleveland on Saturday, marking their 10th straight playoff victory.

Jalen Brunson paced New York with 30 points. O.G. Anunoby chipped in 21, while Mikal Bridges shot 11-for-15 on his way to 22 points. The performance put the Cavaliers on the verge of elimination.

“I'm at a loss for words,” Brunson said. “I thought we fought, most importantly.”

New York now leads the Eastern Conference finals 3-0. If they win game four on Monday in Cleveland, they will complete the sweep.

In NBA history, no team has ever come back to win a playoff series after trailing 3-0.

“The series isn't over,” Anunoby said. “Just keep our foot on their necks and just try to win the game.”

Brunson stressed that the Knicks must maintain their focus.

“Just focus on one possession at a time,” Brunson said.

“The way we've been having that mindset these past couple weeks, we have to continue it, if not actually better.”

It has been 27 years since the Knicks last made the NBA Finals, when they fell to San Antonio. The franchise has not won a championship since 1973.

THE BRUNSON BURNER IGNITES; KNICKS TAKE 3-0 SERIES LEAD IN THE EAST FINALS 😤

30 PTS (21 in 2H) I 6 AST I 10-19 FGM

New York seeks their 9th NBA Finals appearance and first since 1999 on Monday at 8:00 PM ET on ESPN! pic.twitter.com/WpsSe3J44M

— NBA (@NBA) May 24, 2026

Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 13 points, eight rebounds, seven assists, and three steals for New York. Josh Hart added 12 points, nine rebounds, five assists, and four steals. The Knicks have not lost a game in a month.

“Our mindset hasn't changed,” Brunson said. “We're trying to get better every single day. We're trying to learn from winning.”

“There's a lot of things we can get better at. There's a lot of things we can control, a lot of mental errors that we need to clean up, but we're always just looking for ways to try and get better.”

Evan Mobley topped Cleveland with 24 points. Donovan Mitchell finished with 23, and James Harden chipped in 19.

 

Cleveland never held the lead after losing control early. The Cavaliers also blew a 22-point advantage in game one of the series, and New York kept the pressure on from start to finish.

“I guess you could say momentum carried over (from game one),” Anunoby said. “We try to play the right way every game, but maybe that momentum carried over a little bit.”

New York opened hot, hitting 10 of its first 13 shots to go up 29-19 with 3:31 left in the first quarter. Towns scored 11 points during that stretch, and the Knicks closed the period ahead 37-27.

Final. @Redfin | #LetEmKnow pic.twitter.com/qqpJpNTWJ6

— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) May 24, 2026

Cleveland cut the deficit to 60-54 by halftime. The Cavaliers then turned the ball over six times in the first six minutes of the third quarter.

The Knicks carried a 91-82 lead into the fourth and pushed it to 110-93 late before sealing their fifth straight road win.

“It's just executing the game plan on both sides of the floor, playing the right way, moving the ball, then getting stops on defense,” Anunoby said of New York's secret to success.