Immanuel Quickley falls face down on the track and makes a swimming move with his arms and legs after nailing his third of five three-pointers on Friday night.
The electrifying rookie point guard helped the Knicks get upstream after three consecutive losses to end their recent away run and get 25 points off the bench in 23 minutes, including 14 in the fourth quarter, in a 102- win 81 over Cleveland in the Garden.
The Knicks (9-11) kept All Star winger Andre Drummond to just four points – albeit with 15 rebounds – in another strong defensive effort, despite nine combined fouls between centers Mitchell Robinson and Nerlens Noel.
Darius Garland has 24 points for the Cavaliers, who scored just 37 and 55 through three quarters in the first half. The 81 points were the second fewest points the Knicks allowed this season, just behind the 75 for which they held the Celtics on 17 January.
RJ Barrett contributed 24 points, Austin Rivers added 13 off the bench and Julius Randle finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Knicks, who will face the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday at home.
Quickley, who continued Elfrid Payton (the starting point guard) (two points in 23 minutes) for the game, also converted the Knicks’ first 4-point game of the season with four minutes left in the fourth quarter. The 25th overall pick from Kentucky shot just 1-for-11 off the floor on Tuesday in Tuesday’s loss to Utah, one game after beating a career high of 31 in the previous game in Portland.
Robinson said before the game that he was focused on his game with Drummond, who defeated the Knicks 106-103 on January 15 with 33 points and 23 rebounds.
‘Oh definitely. Tonight I’m going to play a lot smarter. If you go out here and come after that, you will deliver my best, ”said Robinson, who scored six points and committed five offenses on Friday night.
Robinson was also a minus 15 in Tuesday’s loss to Utah and surpassed All Star center Rudy Gobert (18 points and 19 rebounds).
Asked if he intends to eventually compile figures like Drummond’s and Gobert’s, Robinson added: ‘I know I can defend. I do not really compare myself to other players. I mean, I’m worried about our team. Other players, they can talk about anything they want to talk about. I’m just talking about us as Knicks. ”
The Knicks missed eight of nine shots and quickly led Cleveland 13-3, but Rivers and Quickley combined a dozen points by the end of the quarter during a 16-4 run for a two-point lead.
Randle first scored a field goal before there were four minutes left in the second quarter, but his 19-foot jumper, two tackles from Robinson, put the Knicks up 38-31. Two shots and a triangle from Barrett extended the Knicks’ lead to 14, and they carried a 47-33 lead until the break.
Drummond had just four points in the half, but Noel was whistled for three fouls and Robinson had two, making his first appearance for veteran bigman Taj Gibson – even if it’s just one minute – as he returned to the Knicks on Jan. 7. .
The Cavs shot just 29 percent from the floor and were 2-for-10 from three-point series through two quarters, but Sexton and Garland combined for 16 points in a 19-2 surge to open the third to help reduce the gap to 52. -49.
The Knicks warmed up with a 12-1 run to end the quarter, but also a baseline for a three-point game by Quickley and a late try by the rookie for a 72-55 lead that came in fourth. has.