Cavs blow 22-point lead in disasterous Game 1 loss to Knicks

Just when you think the Cleveland Cavaliers have finally put things together, they find a new way to disappoint you.

After pushing their lead to 22 points at the start of the fourth quarter, they collapsed over the final eight minutes, as they allowed the New York Knicks to close the fourth on a 30-8 run to send the game to overtime.

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The Cavs’ free fall continued in the extra frames. The Knicks dominated overtime 14-3 to come away with what somehow became a 115-104 victory in Game 1.

Like their Christmas Day showcase, starting and finishing games in Madison Square Garden was an issue.

Cleveland couldn’t establish any kind of offensive rhythm after opening up an early 10-4 lead after the first four minutes. They scored just six points for the remainder of the quarter, as they went 2-12 from beyond the arc in the opening frame.

Fortunately for them, the Knicks looked like a team that hadn’t played a game in over a week. They went 1-10 from three, but were able to scrounge together enough offense to take a seven-point lead after the first.

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New York pushed the margin to 11 early in the second quarter before the Cavs finally woke up.

Cleveland stormed back in the second quarter thanks to the play of their star guards. James Harden settled the momentum as he scored five points and had two helpers in the second. Donovan Mitchell caught fire, scoring seven points in the final two minutes of the half.

This fueled a 21-8 run, allowing the Cavs to take a slim two-point lead into the break.

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Cleveland hit the accelerator in the third.

Evan Mobley, who wasn’t able to get much going in the first half, got rolling in the third quarter. He took over defensively, deterring shots at the rim and grabbing misses on the glass. This was in addition to consistently beating mismatches on the other end. He had seven points in the third to help Cleveland extend their lead.

Mitchell continued his…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/cavs-blow-22-point-lead-030551887.html

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Publish date : 2026-05-20 03:05:00

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