Jalen Brunson, Knicks Hailed by Twitter for Defense, Eliminate Donovan Mitchell, Cavs

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The New York Knicks have advanced to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in 10 years after defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers 106-95 in Game 5 of their first-round postseason matchup Wednesday.

Once again, the Knicks posted a tremendous defensive performance. The Cavs entered the playoffs averaging 112.3 points per game, but they failed to hit 100 points four times in five postseason matchups versus the Knicks.

Cleveland never led in Game 5 even though Knicks star Julius Randle missed the entire second half with a sprained left ankle suffered late in the second quarter. Knicks guard Jalen Brunson led his team to victory with 23 points. RJ Barrett had 21, and Immanuel Quickley scored 19 off the bench.

But the star here was Knicks center Mitchell Robinson, who dominated the Cavs’ bigs with 13 points, 18 rebounds, three blocks and two steals. He would have posted a double-double if you just counted his offensive boards (11). The Cavs only had four offensive boards as a team.

Thanks in part to Robinson’s efforts, the Knicks had 20 second-chance points to the Cavs’ three.

And with that, the Knicks move on in the playoffs after a tremendous performance against the favored Cavs. Twitter lauded the team’s efforts, particularly on defense.

New York will now face either the No. 1 Milwaukee Bucks or the No. 8 Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Heat lead that best-of-seven series three games to one entering Wednesday.