Knicks Outlast Cavaliers Despite Loss of Jalen Brunson

Highlights

• The Knicks courageously defeated the Cavaliers 107-98 in a game of constant runs and comebacks.
• Jalen Brunson left early with an injury, but Miles McBride stepped up, playing 47 mins and scoring 16 points.
• Josh Hart secured his third career triple-double, putting up 13 points, 19 rebounds, and 10 assists in the win.

The Sunday night marquee matchup between the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers became an affair of constant runs and comebacks. Both teams were missing significant starters (and in the Knicks’ case, their biggest starter went down early in the game).

With both teams embarking on various runs and comebacks, it would be the Knicks to finish on top, courageously defeating the Cavs by a score of 107-98.

Cleveland would open the game with Donovan Mitchell and Caris LeVert out, while the Knicks opened with Julius Randle and OG Anunoby (still) out. Jalen Brunson would go down in the first minute of the game with an apparent knee injury, which appeared serious but would later be classified as just soreness.

Despite the loss of Brunson for the game, the Knicks put up a fight after he went down, embarking on a 21-5 run and ending the first quarter up 28-19.

In the second quarter, Cleveland took advantage of a coarse Knicks’ defense, engaging in an 8-0 run where they went 5-for-8 from three (as opposed to going 2-for-9 in the first quarter). Sam Merrill was the primary catalyst of this run as he went 4-for-6 from three in that stretch.

In the last minute of the half, the Cavaliers would sand down the Knicks’ lead to one, at 51-50. But New York refused to relinquish the lead until nine seconds left, when Darius Garland nailed a major three to give Cleveland the 53-51 lead. Josh Hart missed the buzzer-beater shot to allow Cleveland to lead going into half.

The second half would open with a momentum shift as the Knicks would start another run, this time 11-0, to re-take the lead 64-55. But this game was an affair of constant comebacks as the Cavs would storm back and tie it at 64, but failed to take the lead.

The momentum would once again swing in the Knicks’ favor as they ended the quarter up by nine (87-78) but led by as much as 15 (85-70). In the fourth quarter, the momentum would return to Cleveland as they would embark on another run to get the game within three (99-96).

When it appeared the Cavs would come back, the Knicks would throw another dagger, and this time it was Miles McBride with the three-pointer immediately after. Both teams engaged in poor shot selection down the stretch, leading to a flurry of three-point attempts.

But it would be the Knicks who would prevail, running out the clock to take the game, 107-98.

Knicks go shorthanded early

Brunson appeared to sustain an injury in the first minute

The story of the Knicks in the last month has been their lack of adequate firepower to keep up with opponents, due to major starters being sidelined with injury. In January, when they went on a 14-2 run, they only had nine instances where a starter missed games.

In February, that number jumped to 38 games, and it now appears that March could see that figure rise even higher.

Despite the February woes, Jalen Brunson has put the team on his back, doing whatever he can to keep the Knicks competitive. Unfortunately, just 48 seconds into tonight’s game, Brunson would go down awkwardly, appearing to injure his left knee.

Brunson completed the play but went down, and had to be helped off the court, hobbling.

The injury looked brutal, and it appeared he would have to miss significant time. However, halfway through the second quarter, it was announced that he left with a sore left knee and would be questionable to return, though he would later be ruled out for the remainder of this game.

McBride would step in to replace him as the Knicks’ point guard. He stepped up, playing 47 out of 48 minutes and notched 16 points and five assists in that time.

Hart’s breakout game

Josh Hart secures his third career triple-double

Early in the fourth quarter, Josh Hart nailed the final assist needed to put up a triple-double. It was his third career triple-double, all of which have come since January 30.

He became the first Knick with three triple-doubles in the same season since Julius Randle accomplished that feat in the 2020-21 season. Hart would finish the game with 13 points, 19 rebounds (tying his career high), and 10 assists.

Isaiah Hartenstein also contributed significantly in his team’s win. While he only put up eight points, he would secure eight assists (tying his career high) and seven rebounds, which GMS predicted him to notch.

For the Cavs, Evan Mobley notched his 19th double-double of the season the other night against the Detroit Pistons, and GMS predicted him to accomplish that feat again in this game.

With the absence of Mitchell and LeVert, Mobley has stepped up, and he did indeed record his 20th double-double of the season. He put up 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 6 assists in tonight’s game.

The season series between the Knicks and Cavaliers was tied at 1-1 coming into tonight, but it is now 2-1 in favor of New York. Now, the Knicks will head back home to face the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday, while the Cavaliers will stay home to take on the otherworldly Boston Celtics.