All-Star Finale! Knicks Handle Hawks on the Road

The New York Knicks went into the All-Star break on a high note, leading wire-to-wire en route to win their third in a row.

At the rate they're going, the New York Knicks might come to resent the NBA All-Star break or its timing at the very least. 

The Knicks closed out their pre-Salt Lake City slate on a high note, leading from start-to-finish in a 122-101 victory over the Atlanta Hawks. New York (33-27) enters the break on a three-game winning streak and has won five of its last six overall.

Headed to Utah to partake in Sunday's main event (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT), Julius Randle offered justification for his conclusion with a 25-point, 11-rebound double-double. Jalen Brunson fell just short of moving his 30-point streak to four but his 28 nonetheless led the way for the Knicks, pairing it with nine rebounds and five assists. 

In relief, all four members of the Knicks' bench reached double figures one way or another: Immanuel Quickley (14), Josh Hart (13), and Obi Toppin (11) did so in scoring while Isaiah Hartenstein pulled in 11 rebounds.

With the win, the Knicks moved into the sixth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot after Miami lost in Brooklyn. They also built further ground between themselves and the eighth-place Hawks (29-30) with their evenly-split four-game series wrapped up. Star attractions Trae Young and Dejounte Murray were held to 7-of-26 from the field, with De'Andre Hunter pacing the hosts with 20. New York's 21-point margin of victory was its largest since Dec. 20  and allowed them their first pair of consecutive wins by double-figures since Dec. 31/Jan. 2.

The Knicks' next game as a team lands on Feb. 24, when the Knicks tip off the final 22-game stretch to the postseason in Washington (7 p.m. ET, MSG). In the meantime, various New Yorkers will appear throughout the All-Star Weekend at Vivint Arena. Quentin Grimes will appear in the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday (9 p.m. ET, TNT) before Jericho Sims leaps into the Slam Dunk Contest the next night (8 p.m. ET, TNT).

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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