New York Knicks lose to the Cleveland Cavaliers 109-94: As cold as a blizzard in February

The New York Knicks were blown out by the Cleveland Cavaliers, 109-94. The Cavs held New York below 100 points, but they didn’t have to do much to contain the ice-cold Knicks.

The Knicks made life easy for Cleveland’s defense. They committed careless turnovers and shot miserably from three-point range. The Cavs took a big lead in the first quarter and built it up to 18 points by the fourth. Jalen Brunson’s shot was off, and Karl-Anthony Towns lost the aggressive approach he’d shown a game prior. So, the Knicks never even threatened to come back.

If there’s room for optimism, it’s that the Knicks held Cleveland below 30 points in each of the final three quarters, and that’s despite 16 turnovers on the night. The Knicks were a hot shooting streak away from making this competitive, but they never put together enough consecutive buckets to apply pressure.

Let’s have a closer look at the tough night through player recaps.

It’s become a tradition for Mitchell Robinson to put double-doubles on the Cavs. He was New York’s best player in Cleveland by virtue of absolutely dominating the glass in his limited time. Mitch grabbed 15 rebounds in under 20 minutes and mixed in impressive dunks and finishes in the paint.

The Cavs were smart enough to foul Mitch, and he made only one free throw. But Robinson cast a monstrous presence in the middle, one who would have made an even bigger impact if anyone could make threes off the second chances he created. He should have gotten more time.

It’s tough to say whether Jalen Brunson’s aggression was necessary with the team shooting poorly or a catalyst for the poor shooting. He didn’t move the ball as crisply as in recent games, but credit the Cavs’ defense and ball-denial for some of that.

Brunson forced the issue with his shot, but he was the Knicks’ high scorer and the only player making three-pointers at a decent clip. So, it’s tough to blame him for the shot selection.

The most frustrating part of this game was watching the Knicks briefly play through Karl-Anthony Towns to great success. That’s because they completely went away from it for long stretches when they couldn’t make a basket. By the time they got back to KAT, he was completely out of rhythm and turned the ball over.

KAT’s defense let me down in the first quarter, particularly his rim protection. But he improved defensively from the second quarter on.

I’m not sure how long we can keep blaming OG Anunoby’s toenail. He had another bad shooting night and rarely even tried getting into the paint.

Anunoby’s saving grace was defense. He put together some impressive stands against Donovan Mitchell and James Harden in isolation situations. But his offense dragged his performance down.

I was impressed by Mikal Bridges’ first-half play. He played tough defense against the Cavs’ killer backcourt and added impressive baskets inside the arc. But Bridges started the second half by giving Donovan Mitchell three free throws and followed that up by shooting brick after brick.

Bridges never lost his defensive edge and attacked more often than usual. I appreciate his approach to this game, but he has to shoot better.

Josh Hart started the night finishing at the rim and mixing in clever dimes to teammates. He gave the Knicks momentum early on amid the chaos before teams settled in. Then he struggled once the game slowed down.

Hart gave up a lot of size to Evan Mobley, and without his jumper falling, he couldn’t get anything going in the half-court offense.

I hoped the recent wins would build momentum for this team. But the Knicks haven’t shot well since the All-Star break. They were coming off a nice run prior to the break, with consistently strong defense and great ball movement.

The team hasn’t found that same rhythm since coming back. The break should have been reinvigorating, but they lost something in their time off. But I feel confident they’ll find it again.

They’re generating open looks that aren’t falling right now. Those shots won’t keep missing, and the game will open up when players stretch the floor.

The next chance to get going is in Milwaukee. Let’s see how the Knicks bounce back, then I’ll see you next time, Knicks fam!