Atlanta Hawks at New York Knicks

Jalen Brunson scores 39 points and the Knicks rout the Hawks 126-97 for a 3-2 series lead

With their second straight lopsided victory, the Knicks positioned themselves to win the series Thursday night in Atlanta. They would have another chance at home in Game 7 if they need it — and it's getting harder to picture why they should.

The Hawks took a 2-1 lead in the series with one-point victories in Games 2 and 3, but a pretty sizable gap between the teams has appeared since. The Knicks led by 24 on their way to a 114-98 win in Game 4 in Atlanta and by 32 on Tuesday, when the lead was never below double digits in the second half.

“I know they’re going to try to bring a lot of force down there,” Knicks reserve Jordan Clarkson said. “So we've got to be prepared and we know what’s coming, so we’ll be ready.”

Brunson already had eight 40-point games in his first three postseasons with the Knicks. He hadn't even cracked 30 in this series until pouring in 17 points in the fourth quarter to prevent any chance of Atlanta making it a game.

Brunson said the Knicks have picked up their play in the last two games and said they were confident, but also cautious.

“Anything can happen in this series, so we’ve just got to be locked in for Game 6,” he said.

OG Anunoby added 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Knicks, while Karl-Anthony Towns had 16 points, 14 rebounds and six assists. The Knicks need one more victory to reach the second round for the fourth straight season, which would continue their longest streak since advancing nine straight times from 1991-92 through 1999-2000.

Jalen Johnson had 18 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for the Hawks. Dyson Daniels scored 17, but CJ McCollum, the catalyst of both Atlanta victories, had just six.

The Knicks outrebounded the Hawks 48-27 and had a 13-4 advantage in fast-break points against an Atlanta team that needs to win the transition game.

“I just think that their mindset was to come out and try to bully us and be physical, and they did that," Daniels said.

The Knicks made eight of their first 12 shots, then broke free with a 9-0 run late in the first quarter and were ahead 35-22 at the end of the period. Brunson had the last two baskets of an 8-0 surge in the second that pushed it to 59-37, and the Knicks led 64-48 at the break after making 58.5% their shots.

Leading by 18 after three, they put it away when Brunson had a three-point play and 3-pointer to ignite a 12-0 spurt that made it 110-82.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Onyeka Okongwu both had 16 points for the Hawks.

Regular Season Series

NY wins series 2-1