Stunning Knicks comeback is mirror image of last year's Game 1 disaster

Brunson was untouchable, but the Knicks breaking out of a wretched three-point slump was huge. After starting the game 4-of-24 behind the arc, they went 5-of-6 from deep in the last eight minutes, with Landry Shamet and Mikal Bridges each hitting twice from distance.

The Knicks almost had hearts broken at the buzzer

Last year, Haliburton looked like he beat the Knicks with a three-pointer at the buzzer of Game 1, only for it to be ruled a two-pointer since his foot was on the line. Sam Merrill almost ruined the big comeback when his three-pointer went in and out in the final seconds, nearly relegating the Knicks' effort to a footnote. By contrast, Shamet's game-tying three-pointer a few possessions earlier went in thanks to a bounce almost as improbable as the Knicks erasing a 22-point lead.

The comeback seemed to affect the Cavaliers like a gut punch. The Knicks scored the first nine points of overtime and outscored the Cavs 14-3 in the extra period. Perhaps it was the exhaustion of playing two seven-game series catching up to them, but it was an absolutely brutal loss.

Especially since the last three Eastern Conference NBA finalists won the first game of the conference finals. The Cavaliers may have missed their best chance to steal a game in the series. The Knicks exorcised the ghost of last year's Game 1 meltdown at Madison Square Garden and have now won eight straight games. They can't rely on erasing a 22-point lead every game, but they can rely on Brunson.