ATLANTA — The New York Knicks set an NBA playoff record Thursday night with a 47-point halftime lead over the Atlanta Hawks, and cruised to a 140-89 win — the biggest playoff victory in franchise history — and a berth in the second round.
The Knicks held the Hawks to just 36 points in the first half of Game 6 of their first-round series, forcing 14 turnovers. New York had its best offensive half of the playoffs, shooting over 60% overall and 44% from 3 while scoring 83 points.
The Knicks’ 51-point win tied for the sixth-largest margin of victory in NBA postseason history.
The Hawks led 11-9 in the opening minutes before the Knicks outscored Atlanta by 53 points over the next 18 minutes.
The previous record for an NBA playoffs halftime lead was 41 points, set by the 2025 Indiana Pacers and 2017 Cleveland Cavaliers. On Thursday, the Knicks took a 41-point lead at the 7:12 mark of the second quarter — the fastest any team has taken a 40-point lead in the play-by-play era, according to ESPN Research.
The Knicks stretched that to a 50-point cushion at the 4:39 mark, taking a 50-point lead faster than any team had taken a 40-point advantage in a playoff game since tracking began in 1998.
At one point in the first half, Knicks forward OG Anunoby had outscored the Hawks, and he ended the period with 26 points. He finished the game with 29 points in 27 minutes. The Knicks had exceeded 100 points with 8:21 remaining in the third quarter, and New York’s starters were done with 2:45 remaining in the third.
Karl-Anthony Towns had his second triple-double of the series (12 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists), just five days after becoming the fourth Knicks player with a playoff triple-double.
Mikal Bridges, who has struggled in the series, had his best production with 16 points in the first half, topping his previous high of 11 in Game 1, before finishing with 24.
Jalen Johnson led the Hawks with 21 points. Nickeil Alexander-Walker, CJ McCollum and Jonathan Kuminga each had 11 points.
Dyson Daniels and Mitchell Robinson were ejected for fighting after a pair of free throws from Anunoby that gave the Knicks a 50-point lead in the second quarter.
The Knicks will face the winner of the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers series in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
ESPN’s Vincent Goodwill and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
