NBA: Knicks take the lead at Madison and make it 2-0 in the Eastern Conference Finals

The New York Knicks cruised to a 109-93 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers at Madison Square Garden on Thursday to take a 2-0 lead in the NBA Eastern Conference finals.

The team led byMike Brown, which had rallied from a 22-point deficit in the series opener, adds its ninth consecutive postseason victory.

Josh Hart was the leading scorer for the New York squad with 26 points, setting a personal playoff record, while Dominican Karl-Anthony Towns completed a double-double of 18 points and 13 rebounds.

"A very close locker room"

"I felt great all night," Hart said in remarks picked up by AFP. "I knew what our plan was and that it was going to work. I just had confidence in my work, we have a very tight locker room and I'm just in service to my teammates."

All-Star Jalen Brunson, the Knicks' top star, didn't have his best night on offense scoring 19 points and one of his seven attempts from the three-point line but managed to make up his numbers and help the team by serving 14 assists. Brunson, 29, surpassed 40 minutes of action for the second straight game in the East Finals.

The game's breaking point was the third quarter in which New York led 32-21, its best offensive output of the night. "Our defense was good, especially considering the talent they have," Brown noted. "We must take care of the ball because they do a good job defending the paint, we must keep playing fast and avoid bad turnovers."

Ineffectiveness dooms Cavaliers

For the Cavaliers, Donovan Mitchell emerged as the main weapon on offense with 26 points in 39 minutes on the court. "I love what we did, we just came up short," Mitchell stated. "I'm not worried, they defended their house and now it's our turn in Game 3. They scored in key moments, we missed quite a few free throws, it's nothing to be ashamed of."

Cleveland had a night to forget with a 39% (31/80) efficiency from the field and an atypical 69% (22/32) from the free-throw line.

"It wasn't a good night, we should put the ball in the basket and we didn't do that today," a disappointed Kenny Atkinson said at a news conference. "We were able to win the first game, our process was good today and that gives me confidence heading into our home games."

The series continues Saturday with the first of two straight games at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, where the Cavaliers have won six of their seven playoff games this season.