NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� James Harden could not stop Jalen Brunson down the stretch and did not have enough offensively to make up for it.
The Cleveland Cavaliers blew a 22-point lead to lose to the New York Knicks in overtime on Tuesday night, and Harden’s struggles at each end of the court played a big part in the collapse.
Brunson scored on several possessions in a row off the dribble with Harden guarding him. Brunson had 15 points on 7-of-9 shooting in the fourth quarter alone.
鈥淗e made some tough ones, but we obviously all know he鈥檚 a great 1-on-1 player,鈥� Harden said. 鈥淎nybody on an island, it鈥檚 going to be difficult, so we鈥檝e got to do a better job of making sure he sees bodies. On the other hand, they do a good job at supporting him and helping him when he鈥檚 on an island. He made some tough ones, but we鈥檝e got to do a better job as a team.鈥�
Knicks coach Mike Brown put the ball in Brunson鈥檚 hands and trusted his point guard to exploit the matchup against Harden.
鈥淭here is no secret: We were attacking Harden,鈥� Brown said. 鈥淪ometimes you鈥檝e got to do what the game dictates, and they were trying to do the same thing with Jalen, so we said, 鈥極K, we feel like we can play that game.鈥� We try not to play that game much, but we feel like we have a guy that we can play that game with in Jalen.鈥�
Brunson only had 14 points at halftime, and Cleveland’s defense switching defenders on him paid dividends until he got 1-on-1 with Harden to spark the comeback.
鈥淛alen was a little bit more aggressive,鈥� Harden said. 鈥淲e just allowed him to be aggressive, and he made shots and he continued to make shots.鈥�
Coach Kenny Atkinson said he and his staff made adjustments, but nothing worked.
鈥淲e started sending two at him, getting the ball out of his hands, full rotating,鈥� Atkinson said. 鈥淛ames was good most of the game. Listen, we weren鈥檛 great defensively in the fourth quarter.鈥�
Playing 48 hours after blowing out Detroit in Game 7 of the second round, Atkinson said he never considered taking Harden off the court defensively.
鈥淟isten, he鈥檚 been one of our best defenders and a big player in the playoffs,鈥� Atkinson said. 鈥淚 trust him. He鈥檚 smart, great hands.鈥�
an 11-time All-Star, in February helped propel the Cavaliers to this point. But the 36-year-old struggled Tuesday night with the ball in his hands, too.
Harden shot 5 of 16 from the floor, including 1 of 8 from 3-point range, and turned the ball over six times.
Donovan Mitchell, who led Cleveland with 29 points, said he and his teammates could have done a lot more collectively to slow down Brunson and did not put the blame for the improbable defeat on Harden鈥檚 shoulders.
鈥淯ltimately, this isn鈥檛 on him 鈥� it鈥檚 on all of us,鈥� Mitchell said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just on one person. He鈥檚 been around the league long enough. He understands that.鈥�
___
AP NBA:
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
