NEW YORK (Interstat) — Josh Hart scored a playoff career-high 26 points, Jalen Brunson had 19 points and 14 assists, and the New York Knicks moved halfway to their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999 by beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 109-93 on Thursday night to take a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinal series.

Mikal Bridges also scored 19 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 18 points and 13 rebounds for the Knicks, who won their ninth straight postseason game, the longest active streak in the NBA. Cleveland, which forced overtime in Game 1 before falling 115-104, could not recover from a decisive New York run in the third quarter.

The game at Madison Square Garden, played before a sellout crowd of 19,812, saw the Knicks explode with an 18-0 run in the third quarter that turned a tight contest into a blowout. The burst began after Cleveland had cut the deficit to 53-51 on a Jarrett Allen layup with 11 minutes, 43 seconds left in the period. New York responded with eight straight points, including a Brunson three-pointer and a Josh Hart dunk, to push the lead to 10. After Evan Mobley and Max Strus missed chances, Hart hit a three-pointer from the left wing to make it 67-53. Another Hart three, this one from the top of the arc, stretched the lead to 74-53 before Towns added a driving layup. By the time the run ended with a Mikal Bridges free throw, the Knicks led 74-53 and the Cavaliers never got closer than 10 points the rest of the way.

Donovan Mitchell led Cleveland with 26 points, four rebounds and one assist, but he struggled from the field, making only 9 of 25 shots. James Harden added 18 points, six rebounds and two assists, while Jarrett Allen contributed 13 points and 10 rebounds with two blocks. Evan Mobley chipped in 14 points, six rebounds, three assists and two blocks, but the Cavaliers shot just 40 percent from the floor and 29 percent from three-point range.

New York shot 48 percent overall and 37 percent from beyond the arc. The Knicks dominated the boards, grabbing 47 rebounds to Cleveland’s 41, and dished out 30 assists on 42 made field goals.

The game started with the Cavaliers jumping out to an early lead. Allen scored on a tip-in and Mobley hit a pair of three-pointers, giving Cleveland a 13-11 advantage with 7 minutes left in the first quarter. The Knicks answered with a 13-2 run, capped by a Bridges layup off a steal, to take a 24-15 lead. Mitchell’s step-back three at the buzzer cut New York’s lead to 24-20 after one quarter.

The second quarter saw both teams trade baskets. Cleveland pulled within 36-34 on a Harden floater, but the Knicks responded with an 8-2 spurt, including a Hart three and an OG Anunoby three, to lead 50-40. Hart’s three with 30.9 seconds left in the half gave New York a 53-40 lead, but Allen’s layup just before the buzzer made it 53-42 at halftime.

New York’s lead grew to 64-49 early in the third quarter on a Brunson turnaround jumper. After Mobley missed a three, Hart’s dunk made it 66-49. The Cavaliers tried to rally, cutting the deficit to 67-60 on a Harden three, but the Knicks responded with the 18-0 run that essentially decided the game.

Cleveland made one last push in the fourth quarter. Mitchell scored seven points in the first three minutes, cutting New York’s lead to 88-83 with 8 minutes left. But the Knicks answered with a 7-0 run, including a Bridges three, to push the lead back to 95-83. Harden’s three made it 95-88, but Brunson scored on a pullup jumper and later added two free throws to seal the victory.

Hart finished 10 of 19 from the floor, including 4 of 10 from three-point range, to go with four rebounds and seven assists. Brunson shot 7 of 18 overall but made all four of his free throws and dished out a game-high 14 assists. Towns shot 6 of 12 from the field and 3 of 6 from deep, grabbing 13 rebounds. Bridges shot 8 of 14 for his 19 points.

For Cleveland, Harden shot 6 of 15 and 2 of 7 from three, adding six rebounds. Allen was 5 of 9 from the field and 3 of 4 from the line. Max Strus had five points, four rebounds and three assists but shot 1 of 8 from the floor.

Key plays included a block by Allen on Hart in the third quarter and a steal by Hart that led to a Bridges layup starting the decisive run. Towns’ three-pointer with 1 minute, 47 seconds left in the third gave New York an 81-71 lead, and Mitchell’s driving layup with 1 minute, 40 seconds left was too little, too late.

The series now shifts to Cleveland for Game 3 on Monday. The Cavaliers will need to win at home to avoid falling into a 3-0 hole. New York has won nine straight playoff games, the longest such streak since Boston won 10 in a row en route to the 2024 championship.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of New York 118, Cleveland 105, and its ELO system gave the Knicks an 82.80 percent probability to win. New York was installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-6, and the total score of 202 went over the over-under line of 214.5.