Check out these NYC bars to watch Knicks' playoff run

NEW YORK (PIX11) --- What better way to celebrate the end of the New York Knicks' playoff drought than with a stout at one of the city's best bars?

Fans are buzzing after the Knickerbockers closed out the Cleveland Cavaliers with a 106-95 win Wednesday night, sending the team to the second round of the NBA playoffs for the first time in a decade.

"The way this team plays resonates with all our fans,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “They play hard, they play smart, and they play together, and if you do that in New York it’s always recognized."

The Knicks will face an old rival when they play the Miami Heat, who beat top-seeded Milwaukee in the first round. The teams met several times in the late 1990s and most recently in 2012. New York went 3-1 against the Heat during the regular season.

The series begins Sunday afternoon at Madison Square Garden.

So maybe skip brunch and head to one of these Manhattan sports bars instead:

• Stout NYC -- 133 West 33rd St.
• Smithfield Hall NYC --- 138 West 25th St.
• John Sullivan's --- 210 West 35th St.
• Legends --- 6 West 33rd St.
• Hair of the Dog --- 168 Orchard St. in the East Village
• Phebe's --- 361 Bowery near East 4th Street
• The Three Monkeys --- 236 W 54th St.
• McSorleys Old Ale House --- 15 East 7th St.

--- Associated Press material was used in this report.