NEW YORK – Tyler Kolek sprinted back to chase down Donovan Mitchell and had enough energy left to gloat about his defensive stop afterward.
“Right when Donovan Mitchell was on the ground I told him that was all ball,” Kolek said.
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He was right. A replay review turned what was originally called a foul into a block with 1:45 remaining, one of Kolek's pivotal plays that had fans chanting his name inside Madison Square Garden on Christmas Day as the New York Knicks rallied to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 126-124 on Thursday.
Cleveland led most of the way and was ahead by 17 points with under 10 1/2 minutes remaining. But Kolek and fellow reserves Mitchell Robinson and Jordan Clarkson helped spark the comeback, with Kolek scoring 11 of his 16 points in the final period.
Yet it was the second-year guard's play on the other end of the floor that had fans chanting “Tyler Kolek! Tyler Kolek!”
Jalen Brunson lost control of the ball with Cleveland leading 117-116 with 1:47 remaining. Darius Garland scooped it up and threw it ahead toward Mitchell, who was alone near the basket. Kolek, a few steps behind when Mitchell caught it, raced back and swung his hand down as Mitchell was going up for his shot.
A foul was called, and Mitchell grabbed his lower arm in hopes of selling the call. He wouldn't have needed to had he not appeared to slow down a bit as he neared the rim.
“Lay it up, Dom. Lay it up with one foot,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said.
“He knew it. I think he tried to do the two-foot gather and go for the dunk … but he knows. He’ll tell you.”
Mitchell did later acknowledge that he slowed up, because he never expected Kolek to be there.
“Credit to him, man. I didn’t see him at all,” Mitchell said. “I don’t slow up unless there’s nobody around and he was like at the wing. I didn’t even know anybody was behind me. So, credit to him. Hell of a play. That’s winning basketball.”
Kolek kept it up afterward. The Cavs maintained possession because Kolek had batted the ball out of bounds. They missed their next shot and he tracked down the rebound near the sideline, then fed Mikal Bridges for a jumper that gave the Knicks a 118-117 lead.
It was on that play that the chants broke out for the player who got little time as a rookie but is emerging as a key contributor under coach Mike Brown, and was needed down the stretch after Josh Hart left after appearing to roll his ankle earlier in the fourth.
But it's the block of the All-Star Mitchell that figured to get most of the highlights.
“We always talk about next-play speed and I saw him running and honestly if he ran and just did a regular layup, I wouldn’t have caught up to him,” Kolek said. “But he wanted to do some windmill (stuff). He slowed down. He was trying to do something crazy.”
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