Jalen Brunson ignites Knicks in playoff-opening win over Hawks

C.J. Holmes, New York Daily News on Apr 18, 2026

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NEW YORK — For the Knicks, this postseason isn’t just about surviving a round. It’s about making the entire direction of the franchise feel justified.

That was the weight inside Madison Square Garden on Saturday night. An early exit would darken the summer before it even began. A deeper run could validate the decision to move on from Tom Thibodeau, hand the bench to Mike Brown and trust this core to chase something bigger than a decent regular season.

So, when the Knicks needed someone to seize Game 1 before the nerves and pressure could settle in, Jalen Brunson gave them exactly that.

Playoff Brunson showed up early, then stayed in command long enough to carry the Knicks to a 113-102 victory over the Atlanta Hawks in Game 1 of their first-round series.

Brunson dazzled from the jump, finishing with 28 points, five rebounds and seven assists. Karl-Anthony Towns shook off a sluggish opening half and added 25 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while OG Anunoby chipped in 19 points and eight rebounds on a 47.5% shooting night for the Knicks.

CJ McCollum led the Hawks with 26 points on 11-for-20 shooting.

The Knicks will carry a 1-0 series lead into Game 2 on Monday in Manhattan.

Brunson wasted no time setting the tone. He scored 10 of the Knicks’ first 12 points, then kept cooking. By the end of the first quarter, he had piled up 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting, turning what could’ve been a jittery playoff opening into a true show of force. Mikal Bridges helped steady things with an efficient 3-for-4 start, and his 3-pointer off crisp ball movement pushed the Knicks ahead 17-13 and forced Atlanta into an early timeout.

Even then, the game didn’t feel safe. The Hawks had enough balance to keep the Knicks from running away with it, with Jalen Johnson (23 points) scoring eight in the opening quarter. The Knicks led 30-24 after one, but four turnovers had already cost them five Hawks points and kept Atlanta within reach.

That thread ran through much of the first half. Every time it looked like the Knicks might open up daylight, the Hawks answered. Atlanta got especially shaky late in the first when Jonathan Kuminga and Zaccharie Risacher checked in, but the Knicks couldn’t quite land the punch that would’ve changed the feel of the night. And after Brown went to his bench early in the second, it was the reserves who briefly gave the Knicks that push.

Mitchell Robinson, Miles McBride, Landry Shamet and Jordan Clarkson kept the energy alive with Brunson and Towns sitting. Shamet buried his first 3-pointer of the night. Robinson erased Nickeil Alexander-Walker at the rim. Anunoby followed with a 3-pointer and then two free throws that stretched the lead to 40-29 with 9:19 left in the half, the Knicks’ biggest edge to that point.

But Atlanta didn’t blink. McCollum’s floater tied the game at 48 with 3:43 left in the second quarter, capping a response that exposed some of the Knicks’ softer spots. The Hawks got plenty from McCollum, Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu before halftime, forced six Knicks turnovers, committed just four themselves and won the 3-point battle 8-6 through two quarters. The Knicks still took a 57-55 lead into the break, mostly because Brunson already had 22 points and Anunoby added 11, but Towns was still searching, going just 1 for 6 in the half and not scoring his first field goal until the 4:50 mark.

Towns found his footing after halftime.

The third quarter turned on a few different moments. One was ugly. McCollum kicked Brunson below the belt early in the period, sending Brunson to the floor while officials reviewed the play for a hostile act. McCollum was hit with a technical foul after review. Another came when Atlanta’s Mouhamed Gueye picked up his third foul with 5:44 left, opening the door for the Knicks to stretch the lead again, even as the Hawks leaned into hack-a-Mitch.

Robinson split a pair at the line to make it an eight-point game, then Bridges jumped a Gabe Vincent pass and hammered home a two-handed dunk that pushed the Knicks back ahead by double digits for the first time since the second quarter.

Brunson scored only four in the third. He didn’t need to do it alone anymore.

Towns scored eight in the quarter and kept getting to the line, while the rest of the starters helped carry the offense. Just as important, the Knicks tightened up defensively, holding Atlanta to 34.8% shooting and forcing five turnovers in the third to take an 83-74 lead into the fourth.

Then they closed it like a team that understood what Game 1 was supposed to do. The Knicks opened the final quarter on a 20-13 burst, stretched the lead to 16 with 5:56 remaining and never let the Hawks make it interesting again.

For one night, at least, the pressure of this postseason didn’t harden into doubt. It looked like a team taking hold of the stage it’s been handed.