It was the kind of performance that can inspire confidence — at least until it wasn’t.
Contending for a title is the name of the game at Madison Square Garden, and the road to a title contention will undoubtedly run through Cleveland, home to the East’s No. 1-seeded Cavaliers.
The Knicks traveled to “The Land” for the second leg of a back-to-back after Tuesday night’s victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. With their first (Jalen Brunson), second (Miles McBride) and third-string (Cameron Payne) point guards plus defensive anchor Mitchell Robinson (left ankle injury management) on the injured list, the Knicks gave a valiant effort, by as many as 15 points before the Cavs showed why they’re the best in the East and pulled away for a TKT-TKT victory at Rocket Arena on Wednesday.
The Cavaliers broke the Knicks’ record of 71 straight games won when leading by 15 or more points.
The Knicks have now fallen to 0-3 against the Cavaliers this season with a fourth and final match looming on April 11. Each of New York’s final three matchups against Cleveland have fallen on a back-to-back. Meanwhile, the Cavs got two days of rest in-between games before hosting the Knicks on Tuesday.
It didn’t look like it to start. In fact, the Knicks looked like the team with fresh legs. New York jumped out to an early 12-4 lead and built a 25-15 advantage midway through the opening period. The lead swelled to 15 with 3:58 remaining in the second quarter, largely thanks to OG Anunoby, who had 19 points in the first half alone, including 13 on 3-of-4 shooting from deep in Period 2.
And then the Cavs woke up.
Cleveland held the Knicks to just 9-of-26 shooting coming out of the halftime break and just one-of-eight shooting from downtown. All the while, the Cavaliers got whatever they wanted, shooting a perfect 15-of-15 from two-point range in the third quarter and 81 percent from the field altogether.
The Knicks shot just 1-of-15 from deep in the second half.
Karl-Anthony Towns returned to the rotation after sitting Tuesday with left knee soreness. He finished with 25 points and 13 rebounds but battled foul trouble after picking up three in the first half. Anunoby finished with 23 points but only registered four in the second half, and Josh Hart added 19 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals.
The Knicks, however, didn’t only struggle generating offense. They also couldn’t slow down Cavs All-Star Donovan Mitchell, who thrived both in isolation and pick-and-roll situations while defended by Mikal Bridges. Mitchell scored 27 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the field in just 28 minutes of action on Tuesday.
Bridges shot 3-of-6 from the field for eight points in 36 minutes of play.
Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen combined for 34 points and 12 rebounds, taking advantage of a light Knicks front court while Towns battled foul trouble. Without Robinson, and with rookie Ariel Hukporti still on the mend after tearing his meniscus, Tom Thibodeau turned to Precious Achiuwa at the backup center spot.
Achiuwa finished with 13 points and six rebounds in 20 minutes off the bench, while the Cavaliers got 32 points from their second unit, including 16 from De’Andre Hunter and 11 from Isaac Okoro.
Hunter has now scored 16 or more in nine of his last 10 games against the Knicks, including 16 points in 19 minutes on Feb. 26 and seven 20-point performances prior to his trade from the Atlanta Hawks.
The Knicks aren’t on pace to meet the Cavaliers in the playoffs unless one of two things happens: Either the Knicks, who now have a 3.5-game lead on the No. 4-seeded Indiana Pacers, spiral out of third place, or they pull an upset over the reigning champion Boston Celtics, provided both teams make it to Round 2.
They are also hopeful Brunson is back on the court when the two teams face each other again on April 11.
Brunson or not, the results haven’t changed. The Knicks are winless against the three-best teams in the NBA — the Cavaliers, the Celtics and the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The first half in Cleveland was promising, but it wasn’t enough. Time will tell if a healthy roster can make up the difference.
