McCollum ruins Knicks' night again,
leading the Hawks to a 109-108 victory and a 2-1 lead
[April 24, 2026]
By PAUL NEWBERRY
ATLANTA (AP) — CJ McCollum hit a fadeaway jumper with 12.5 seconds
left to ruin New York's night again, leading the Atlanta Hawks to a
109-108 victory and a 2-1 lead over the Knicks in their first-round
playoff series on Thursday night.
After starring in a Game 2 stunner at Madison Square Garden,
McCollum got the ball with his team trailing by a point. He came
through again from 15 feet, finishing with 23 points.
Hawks coach Quin Snyder called it “a great shot,” but stressed the
effort of his entire team.
“They work, they share,” Snyder said. “That's the thing about this
group that I've enjoyed so much.”
The Hawks led nearly the entire game, building an 18-point lead in
the first half. But New York rallied for a 108-105 edge on Jalen
Brunson's three-point play with 1:03 remaining.
After Jalen Johnson, who led the Hawks with 24 points, rolled in a
shot, Josh Hart missed a 3-pointer for the Knicks. New York got the
offensive rebound, but couldn't get off a shot ahead of the
24-second clock.
“You couldn't ask for anything better than that,” Knicks coach Mike
Brown lamented. “Less than a minute to go in the game and a chance
to go up by three.”
The Knicks failed to get off a shot at the end, either, as Brunson
turned the ball over and the horn sounded.
Jonathan Kuminga had a huge night for the Hawks off the bench,
finishing with 21 points.
OG Anunoby led the Knicks with 29 points, Brunson had 26 and
Karl-Anthony Towns chipped in with 21. It wasn't enough for New
York.
Brown griped about the officiating, believing the refs missed some
calls at the basket. But he stressed that his team must make better
decisions going forward.
[to top of second column] |
New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) reacts during the
first half in Game 3 of a first-round NBA playoffs basketball series
against the Atlanta Hawks, Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP
Photo/Colin Hubbard)
Game 4 is Saturday in Atlanta.
“They're closing out hard," Brown said of the Hawks. ”It's a tough
game for the officials to officiate, but I know we got fouled on a
few of the tries that didn't get called."
McCollum picked up were he left off at Madison
Square Garden, hitting a step-back jumper beyond the arc for
Atlanta's first points. He had 16 by the halftime break.
McCollum showed off more than his offensive skills. After Hart
scooped up a loose ball and drove toward the hoop with only the
Atlanta guard to beat, McCollum blocked the shot and sent the ball
off Hart's foot to give possession back to the Hawks.
The Hawks outscored the Knicks 27-12 over the final seven minutes of
the opening quarter, turning the game in their favor with an 11-0
spurt and closing the period with three straight 3-pointers. The
first was by little-used center Mouhamed Gueye, left wide open by
the New York defense, followed by two straight from backup forward
Kuminga to send the State Farm Arena crowd into a frenzy.
But, with the Hawks on the verge of blowing the game open late in
the first half, New York closed the the period on a 12-2 run.
Atlanta went to the locker room with a 58-50 lead.
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