Knicks in 4! Josh Hart Silences Doubters as NY Sweep Remains Alive

As the chants of “Knicks in 4” reverberated throughout Madison Square Garden, Josh Hart was sitting on the Knicks bench. It’s the same place he was most of the fourth quarter and overtime in Game 1. But he might as well have been sitting on a stool in Antarctica for how different his position was Thursday night.

Hart scored a team-high 26 points as the Knicks dominated the Cavs, 109-93, in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals to take a 2-0 lead in the series. It was quite the turnaround after Hart scored 13 points and was benched during the Knicks' epic 22-point fourth-quarter comeback in Game 1. Plenty questioned whether he should stay there in Game 2.

Thank goodness Knicks coach Mike Brown doesn’t listen to talking heads.

Hart of the City

Hart shot 10-for-21 and did all his normal dirty work (7 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, harassing defense). Hell, Jalen Brunson even told him to dust off a tweaked ankle after a hard foul on a breakaway. Hart did, making 1-of-2 free throws and not missing any time until the game was well in hand.

That’s when he got to sit down. The MSG crowd gave him a standing ovation. This was a playoff career-high for Hart.

Brown stuck with Landry Shamet as the Knicks staged their comeback in Game 1. He wisely went back to Hart in Game 2. The Cavs dared Hart to shoot, treating him like he was Shaq at the 3-point line. Hart made them pay (eventually), going 5-for-11 from deep and playing a big role as the Knicks went on an 18-0 run in the third quarter.

It started off shaky for Hart, but he kept firing. Unlike John Starks, the shots eventually fell.

This was the Knicks ninth straight win. That’s their longest winning streak in postseason history.

Mended Bridges

Another once-maligned Nova Knick turned hero is Mikal Bridges. Similar to Hart, he was benched early in the series against the Hawks in the opening round after some shaky shooting. He worked his way back and is now a massive part of the Knicks' offense.

Bridges made several key mid-range shots in the third and fourth quarters and put the final nail in the coffin’s corner – literally. His corner 3 with just over six minutes left gave the Knicks a 95-82 lead. The Cavs called a timeout after that, but never got the deficit to single digits.

Bridges finished with 19 points on 9-of-12 shooting.

Next Up

The Knicks and Cavs play Game 3 on Saturday night. If Knicks in 4 is to become reality, well, you know what they have to do in Game 3. Just don’t expect Hart to be on the bench in crunch time again.

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