It was rocking at Madison Square Garden as the New York Knicks climbed back from a 13 point halftime deficit to take out the Atlanta Hawks in Game 2 on Wednesday night. The Knicks outscored the Hawks 57-35 in the second half as they went on to win 101-92. The win evened the series up at 1-1 with Game 3 slated for Friday in Atlanta. Here are two big reasons on how the Knicks got it down in the second half to complete the comeback victory.

Derrick Rose started the second half

Elfrid Payton has been an absolute disaster on the floor for over a month now yet Tom Thibodeau insists on keeping him in the starting lineup. The Knicks' coach continues to reference Payton's defense as a reason to warrant him minutes but truth be told, Payton's defense isn't even great. After being put behind the 8-ball at halftime and trailing by 13, Thibs pulled the plug on Payton and started Derrick Rose in the third quarter.

The Knicks would proceed to start the frame on an 11-4 run spearheaded by 5 points from Rose. The quick offensive burst from Rose is something that has not been seen from Payton much of all this year and Payton getting no time on the floor in the second half leaves many wondering if there will be a change to the starting lineup for Game 3.

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Julius Randle started to figure it out

New York's defense was tremendous in the second half and could easily be listed as the reason they clamped down and made the comeback because of the role it did play. But, if not for Julius Randle starting to figure it out in the final two quarters, the defense may not have been enough.

Randle had a grand total of zero field goals and two points at halftime for the Knicks. The NBA Most Improved Player and Knicks all-star also had big time issues in Game 1 on the offensive end. While his second half was far from flawless, Randle was way more aggressive driving to the hoop for his shot and facilitating and setting up his teammates. Randle went on to score 13 critical points in the second half for the Knicks.

Game 3 is Friday in Atlanta and if it's anything like Game 1 and Game 2, buckle up!