By Jayden Racca for Mid-Hudson News
April 22, 2023
Following the 2020 playoffs in which attendance was restricted due to the Covid-19 pandemic, a full-capacity playoff crowd packed Madison Square Garden for the first time in 10 years to watch their New York Knicks dominate the Cleveland Cavaliers 99-79 in Game 3 of their first-round matchup.
The Knicks were led to their second victory in this best-of-seven series by point guard Jalen Brunson who recorded 21 points and 6 assists alongside forward RJ Barrett who tallied 19 points himself.
In what was a big-time bounce-back performance from the struggling Barrett, he came out confident from the gates totaling 10 points in the first quarter alone.
However, Brunson had the opposite trajectory. Going just 1 for 5 from the field in the first quarter, his comfort and confidence grew as the game progressed. Mesmerizing the sell-out crowd with his crafty play and tremendous footwork down the stretch, Brunson electrified the city in what was an off night from co-star Julius Randle who had just 11 points on 20% shooting.
Despite an ugly first half of play that saw a total of 6 three-pointers made from both teams combined, the second half saw a rise in action offensively as the Cavs increased their three-point percentage from 10.5% to 35.7% while the Knicks improved from 21.1% to 42.9%.
The Cavaliers were led by guards Donovan Mitchell and Caris LeVert who finished with 22 points and 17 points respectively.
Game 4 is set to take place Sunday, April 23rd at 1:00 p.m. in New York.
