Knicks' Jalen Brunson Praises 'Electric' Crowd vs. Cavs: 'Nothing That Comes Close'
Playing in front of their home fans for the first time this postseason, the New York Knicks had no trouble in a 99-79 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers to take a 2-1 lead in their Eastern Conference playoff series.
Knicks star Jalen Brunson praised the "electric" crowd in Madison Square Garden for their passion that was on display throughout the game: "There is no other. There is no replica. There is nothing that comes close to it. I'm just happy to be a part of it."
Coming off their second-lowest scoring game of the season in Game 2 (90 points), New York's defense turned the tables on the Cavs' usually-potent offense. They became the first team all season that didn't score at least 80 points in a game.
Cleveland shot 38.8 percent from the field, including 7-of-33 from three-point range. Donovan Mitchell accounted for more than one-third of the points scored by Cavaliers' starters (22 of 65 points).
Even though this wasn't the most aesthetically pleasing game to watch, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau probably felt right in his element. His style of coaching is geared toward grinding out these low-scoring wins on the strength of hard-nosed defense.
The Knicks offense did come alive in the second half, scoring 54 points after the intermission. Brunson, in his first playoff game at MSG, finished with 21 points, six assists and four rebounds.
New York is two wins away from its first playoff series win since 2013. Brunson will look to give his team a 3-1 series lead in Game 4 on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
