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A first quarter flurry from Jalen Brunson and a fourth quarter burst from Karl-Anthony Towns bookended the Knicks’ 113-102 Saturday win over the Atlanta Hawks. The victory gave the Knicks an early 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven first round series.
The two teams will see each other again at Madison Square Garden on Monday night for Game Two. As the Knicks look to build a 2-0 series lead, let’s dive into keys for the game.
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Adjustment to the adjustment
It took about three-and-a-half quarters for the Hawks to target New York’s weakness, which is the club’s offense when a wing defends Towns and a center checks Josh Hart.
With a win slipping from their grasp, Hawks head coach Quin Syder went to the tried and true strategy. He put Dyson Daniels on Towns, and had center Onyeka Okongwu guard Hart. After the Knicks took a 106-89 lead with four minutes and 36 seconds remaining, Atlanta went on a 9-0 run. Though the Hawks never got closer than eight points the rest of the way, Atlanta will likely go back to the strategy in the next game.
One look the Hawks leaned on towards the end of the game was Daniels on Towns and Nickeil Alexander-Walker assigned to Brunson. The Hawks can switch the pick-and-roll with Daniels and Alexander-Walker. It can potentially take New York’s offense out of flow and disrupt the potent Brunson and Towns pick-and-roll. New York’s two All-Stars combined for 53 points on Saturday.
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The Knicks will need to be ready for the adjustment on Monday night for Game Two. Maybe they post Towns up more, or use Hart as a screener to a greater degree.
Towns still has a physical advantage regardless of any defender Atlanta throws at him. And he dominated the fourth quarter, scoring 11 of his 25 points in the final frame. How the Knicks respond to the defensive wrinkle will be a central storyline for Game Two.
Fastbreak delayed
The Hawks are known for their high octane attack, but it was the Knicks who picked up the pace in Game One. The Knicks won the fastbreak battle, outscoring Atlanta 22-13 in the category.
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Part of slowing down Atlanta’s frenetic pace was lowering…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/3-keys-knicks-vs-hawks-143555652.html
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Publish date : 2026-04-19 14:35:00
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