Knicks topple Hawks 113-102 in Game 1, seize series lead

The Knicks spent Game 1 showing that Atlanta’s most disruptive wrinkle was not enough to knock them off course. New York beat the Hawks 113-102 at Madison Square Garden to open the Eastern Conference first-round series with a 1-0 lead, and the difference came in the same areas that often decide playoff series: shot quality, rebounding and halftime adjustments.

Atlanta’s decision to lean on a hack-a-Mitch approach against Mitchell Robinson briefly tested New York’s rhythm, and the opening moments carried just enough tension to recall the Knicks’ collapse in Game 1 against Indiana in the same building. But the Knicks steadied themselves behind Jalen Brunson’s 28 points and Karl-Anthony Towns’ 25, with Towns scoring 19 after halftime to turn a close playoff opener into a cleaner separation late.

That second-half surge mattered because Atlanta had enough creation to stay within range for stretches. CJ McCollum led the Hawks with 26 points, while Dyson Daniels filled the box score with 11 assists, nine rebounds and three steals. Yet New York’s answer was more decisive: the Knicks shot 48 percent from the field and 48 percent from three-point range, compared with 44 percent overall and 38 percent from deep for Atlanta. The Knicks also won the glass 45-40 and committed one fewer turnover, 11 to 12.

The broader series context adds weight to that edge. New York entered the postseason as the No. 3 seed in the East at 53-29, while Atlanta arrived as the No. 6 seed at 46-36, a retooled group boosted by breakout seasons from Jalen Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker. That made the first game more than a simple home-court formality: it was a test of whether Atlanta’s pace and pressure could force New York into uncomfortable possessions. For long stretches, the Hawks managed to make it awkward. They did not make it decisive.

Even with an injury scare for OG Anunoby and a Knicks injury report that listed three players before tipoff, New York handled the night’s biggest swing better than Atlanta did. The opener was the sort of win that can shape a series, not because it decided everything, but because it suggested the Hawks’ best tactical lever may not be enough if Brunson keeps dictating the floor and Towns keeps punishing second-half coverage.

Game 2 was scheduled for Monday, April 20, at 8:00 p.m. ET on Peacock and NBC, and New York now has the one thing it most wanted after a shaky playoff memory in the same arena: control of the series.