The Knicks and Cavaliers both came out shooting on Monday, with the Knicks mounting a big comeback in the fourth quarter to force overtime, eventually coming away with a 139-134 win. >> Box Score

Five things to know from Monday's game

1) The Knicks and Cavs played at a frenetic pace all night long, a stark contrast to Saturday's 92-85 win over the Pacers. The high-scoring affair began early, as the Cavs led 37-33 after the first quarter. Cleveland opened up the second quarter on a 8-3 run to extend its lead to nine, but the Knicks battled back to head to the locker room leading 63-62 at halftime.

The back-and-forth affair continued in the third quarter, with the teams exchanging the lead six times. But the Cavaliers extended their lead to nine thanks to an 8-0 run and finished the quarter up, 100-95. Damyean Dotson hit a three-pointer for the first points of the fourth quarter, but Cleveland went on another run to extend its lead to 10, the largest for either team on the night. But the Knicks stormed back, and a Morris three-pointer tied the game at 120 with less than three minutes to play. After a defensive stop, Elfrid Payton found a cutting Julius Randle for a dunk to give the Knicks their first lead since early in the third quarter.

With the Knicks up three and less than a minute to play, Collin Sexton drained a three to tie the game. After Morris missed a three of his own with 13 seconds left, Frank Ntilikina collected the offensive rebound to give the Knicks a look at the last shot of regulation. Mike Miller called timeout and set up a play to get Morris a look at baseline jumper. He got the shot he wanted, but it rattled in and out, setting up overtime with the game tied at 127.

2) Darius Garland opened up the extra frame with a three-pointer to give Cleveland a 130-127 lead. The teams traded buckets until Morris sank a contested jumper with a minute remaining to give the Knicks a 135-134 lead. Great defense forced the Cavs into a shot clock violation, and Morris hit another tough jump shot to make it a three-point game with 13 seconds left. After a timeout, Garland forced a quick shot that didn't go, and the Knicks got the rebound to seal the victory, with Morris sinking his late free throws. He had 16 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter and overtime.

3) Payton was outstanding all game, set a career high with 15 assists to go along with 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Knicks' first triple-double of the season.

4) Ntilikina was extremely efficient in his 23 minutes on Monday, chipping in with nine points and seven rebounds. The Knicks were +13 with Ntilikina on the floor.

5) Dennis Smith Jr. (15 points), Bobby Portis (12 points) and Kevin Knox (12 points) all had double-figures off the bench for the Knicks.

Highlights

FRANK! pic.twitter.com/vKU7MZlOsn
- NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) February 4, 2020

Mitch got 🆙 pic.twitter.com/ycZiz0YTel
- NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) February 4, 2020

Mook sinks it 👌 pic.twitter.com/P1EKUgrvW3
- NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) February 4, 2020

EP takes care of business on both ends 💪 pic.twitter.com/VsBpn98VRM
- NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) February 4, 2020

What's next

The Knicks return to Madison Square Garden for a Thursday matchup against the Orlando Magic with tip-off scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

Popular in the Community