The BreakdownGrind
Knicks shot better, but Cavaliers lived at the free-throw line
James Harden scored 32, made 9 of 11 free throws and hit the three that put Cleveland ahead for good against a Knicks team that shot better from the field.
The Cavaliers beat the Knicks 115-107 in New York on Wednesday, in a game that stayed within five through its last two minutes. James Harden's pull-up three with 4:22 left put Cleveland ahead for good at 104-101. Jalen Brunson's driving bank shot cut it to 104-103 at 3:26, and New York got no closer the rest of the way. After an Evan Mobley floater, Jarrett Allen scored seven straight Cleveland points, from the line and on two dunks, and the lead reached 113-105.
| CLE | Stat | NYK |
|---|---|---|
| 47.1 | FG% | 49.4 |
| 39.5 | 3PT% | 35.9 |
| 40 | Rebounds | 34 |
| 11 | Off. rebounds | 7 |
| 85 | FG attempts | 83 |
| 9 | Turnovers | 11 |
Cleveland lived at the line
The Cavaliers made 20 of 25 free throws. The Knicks made all 11 of theirs.
Harden went 9 of 11 from the line on his way to 32 points. Donovan Mitchell made all five of his attempts. For New York, OG Anunoby went 6 of 6, including the pair that tied it at 101 with 5:09 left. Brunson, who led the Knicks with 27, took no free throws.
New York shot better inside the arc
The Knicks made 61.4% of their two-point shots. The Cavaliers made 53.2%.
Across all field goals, New York shot 49.4% and Cleveland 47.1%. The three-point line was close to even: the Cavs made 15 of 38, the Knicks 14 of 39. New York finished with 33 assists, Cleveland with 23. Karl-Anthony Towns had 21 points and eight of those assists, on 7-of-11 shooting.
The Cavs got more second chances
Cleveland grabbed 11 offensive rebounds to New York's 7. Allen had four of them among his 14 rebounds, and Mobley and Meleek Thomas had three each.
The Cavaliers took 85 shots, the Knicks 83. The one stretch where Cleveland's offense stalled came in the 3rd quarter, when the Cavs went 4:13 without a field goal. New York used that stretch for an 11-0 run that tied the game at 69, with Brunson scoring five of the points.
Cleveland still led 82-76 after three. The 4th quarter brought two ties, both erased by Harden, and no lead changes.
CLE ahead above the line · NYK ahead below