NEW YORK – Trae Young had 22 points and 11 assists, De’Andre Hunter and Jalen Johnson dominated the Knicks’ frontcourt and the Atlanta Hawks continued their surprising NBA Cup run to the semifinals in Las Vegas, defeating New York 108 – 100 on Wednesday evening.

Hunter scored 24 points and Johnson had 21 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists for the Hawks, who were perhaps the surprise team of the tournament after defeating the defending champion Celtics in Boston and the NBA leaders Cleveland Cavaliers in group play to reach the knockout stage Number 3 in the East.

Now they will face another Eastern power, the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks, in a semifinal game on Saturday.

Josh Hart scored 21 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 19 points and 19 rebounds for the Knicks, who went 4-0 in group play and built a 12-point lead on Wednesday. But just like in the 2021 playoffs, it was Young who celebrated on the Madison Square Garden floor after eliminating the Knicks.

Take away

Hawks: For some young Hawks players, getting out of a tough pool group would have been a great experience. Now they can win the whole thing with two wins in Las Vegas.

Knicks: One of the favorites to win the tournament had a shockingly poor second half, losing 2-0 to Atlanta this season.

Key moment

The Knicks led 66-62 before Young scored eight straight points and scored on a 31-footer for the second straight time. Hunter then hit a three-pointer to push the lead to 11-0, with Atlanta taking the lead for the first time in the game, taking a 73-66 lead.

Key statistics

Atlanta outscored New York 61-46 in the second half.

Next

While the Hawks travel to Las Vegas, the Knicks travel to Orlando for a game on Sunday.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA