NEW YORK -- Jalen Brunson hadn't yet delivered a signature game in the New York Knicks' first-round series against the Atlanta Hawks. Game 5 seemed like the perfect time to remedy that.
Brunson's 39 points was, by far, his best showing of the series, and it coincided with the Knicks' all-around domination of the Hawks on Tuesday night in a 126-97 win at Madison Square Garden. New York took a 3-2 lead with a chance to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals Thursday.
It was the second straight complete performance by the Knicks after two one-point losses, and perhaps Brunson had the Hawks' Game 2 visit in mind when they stunned the Knicks with a fourth-quarter rally to steal home-court advantage.
Brunson closed out the evening with 17 in the fourth to help the Knicks win comfortably.