NBA Playoffs: Atlanta Hawks stun New York Knicks to level series as Minnesota Timberwolves end Denver Nuggets’ win streak | NBA News

CJ McCollum scored 32 points as the Atlanta Hawks rallied to stun the New York Knicks 107-106 on Monday night, levelling their first-round playoff series at one game apiece.

McCollum led a late surge that was almost in vain when he missed two free throws with 5.6 seconds remaining. The Knicks rushed the ball up the court without any timeouts left, but Mikal Bridges missed a jumper as time expired.

The Hawks had trailed the whole second half and were down by 12 after three quarters. But Atlanta chipped away and a basket by McCollum gave the Hawks a 101-100 lead – their first of the series in the second half – with 2:09 to play.

He made another for a three-point lead, and after Jalen Brunson tied it with a three-pointer, McCollum answered with another jumper to make it 105-103 with 33 seconds to play.

Jonathan Kuminga added 19 points off the bench for the Hawks and Jalen Johnson scored 17, including a basket with 10 seconds left for a four-point lead for the No 6 seeds in the Western Conference, who host game three on Thursday.

Brunson had 29 points for the Knicks and Karl-Anthony Towns added 18.

The Knicks are trying to reach the second round for a fourth straight season, their longest playoff stretch since the 1991-92 to 1999-2000 seasons.

“This is a game we should have won,” New York’s Josh Hart said. “In the playoffs you can’t give away games.”

Nuggets win streak ended as Timberwolves tie series

Anthony Edwards scored 30 points, Julius Randle added 24 and the Minnesota Timberwolves rallied past the Denver Nuggets 119-114 on Monday night to tie their Western Conference playoff series at one game apiece.

Denver had won 13 straight since losing on March 18.

Edwards turned the ball over with 31 seconds left and Christian Braun got fouled at the other end, but he missed one of two free throws, leaving Denver trailing 115-114 with 19 seconds remaining.

After a Minnesota timeout, Randle sank two free throws and Donte DiVincenzo added a breakaway dunk to cap the comeback from a 19-point first-quarter deficit.

Jamal Murray scored 30 points and Nikola Jokic had 24 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists. But the Nuggets’ All-Star duo shot a combined two for 12 in the fourth quarter, managing a measly four points as the Wolves evened a best-of-seven series that shifts to Minneapolis for game three on Thursday night.

Denver blew a chance to take control against its Northwest Division rival. The Nuggets are 8-0 in their history when winning the first two games of a playoff series, and the Wolves are 0-8 when dropping games one and two.

Murray sank a 51-foot three-pointer at the half-time buzzer to tie it at 64. Jokic came on strong after a quiet start, scoring 16 points in the third quarter when the Nuggets took a 93-90 lead.

Edwards looked much better than he did during his 22-point effort in game one, when his rust from a bum knee was apparent. This time, he drove to the basket more instead of settling for jumpers.

Minnesota, which outscored Denver 20-3 in second-chance points, rallied from an early 19-point deficit and surged to a 64-56 lead only to watch the Nuggets score the last eight points of the first half.

Murray, who missed all eight of his three-pointers in the series opener, started things off Monday night with a three and was five for seven from deep before half-time. In the first quarter, he had a pair of four-point plays, fouled both times by Ayo Dosunmu.

Cleveland’s trio of stars down Raptors to take 2-0 lead

Donovan Mitchell continued his postseason scoring prowess, while James Harden and Evan Mobley made big plays on both ends of the floor as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Toronto Raptors 115-105 for a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series.

“This was a superstar game. Those three led us,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said. “They hit the big shots. James had four steals in the second half, so excellent defensively.

“Evan really good defensively and Don just made some out-of-this-world, incredible shots. That’s why they’re stars.”

Mitchell scored 30 points, including four three-pointers, and had seven rebounds, five assists and a steal in 37 minutes. Harden added 28 points, but his biggest impact might have been on defense with five steals. Mobley had a team-high eight rebounds and scored 25 points on 11-of-13 shooting.

It was the fourth time in franchise history the Cavaliers have had at least three players score 25 points in a playoff game.

Mitchell had nine points in the fourth quarter, including seven straight as the Cavaliers built a 106-90 lead with 3:09 remaining. The All-star guard added some flair in the final minute with a 13-foot turnaround bank shot with 45.3 seconds remaining.

Harden was 9-of-14 from the field and had five rebounds, four assists and one block. He moved past Rajon Rondo for seventh place in career postseason assists with 1,139.

Harden and Mobley showed some teamwork on defense during the fourth quarter. Mobley forced Toronto’s Sandro Mamukelashvili to alter his shot in the paint, and Harden came up with the steal with 4:02 remaining, making it his fourth career playoff game with at least five.

Watch the 2026 NBA playoffs live on Sky Sports, continuing with the Philadelphia 76ers @ Boston Celtics on Sky Sports+ from 11pm on Tuesday evening.