New York Knicks head coach Mike Brown walked away from Game 2 relieved but conflicted. His team defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers109-93 Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.
New York protected its home court and now leads the best-of-seven Eastern Conference finals 2-0.
The win was convincing on the scoreboard, but the stat sheet told a different story. Brown was baffled by a glaring free-throw disparity, particularly in the final 24 minutes.
The Cavaliers attempted 22 free throws in the second half while the Knicks had six.
"I don't know what to do about the free throw line," Brown told reporters postgame. "22 to 6 in the second half. I gotta go back and watch the film. Maybe we're fouling... Maybe we were fouling and they weren't fouling. I don't know."
The Cavaliers shot 22-of-32 from the charity stripe overall. New York went just 8-of-14, less than half of Cleveland's attempts.
The Knicks compensated in every other area. They made 51.8% of their field goals to Cleveland's 38.8 and owned the assist column 32-15.
Josh Hart paced New York with a playoff career-high 26 points, seven assists and four rebounds in 33 minutes. Mikal Bridges and Jalen Brunsonadded 19 apiece.
Karl-Anthony Towns contributed 18 points and 13 rebounds. Donovan Mitchell led Cleveland with 26 points.
Brown's concerns carry weight. This series has been physical from the opening tip, and his squad has competed hard on both ends. He hopes the whistle finds more balance in the games ahead.
The series shifts to Rocket Arena in Cleveland for Game 3 on Saturday.
