the Nix The 2023 NBA Playoffs opened with a road victory, defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1, 101-97.
Julius Randel He returned to the field after missing the last five games of the regular season with the A’s Sprained right anklealso joined Galen BronsonAnd RJ BarrettAnd Quentin Grimes And Mitchell Robinson in the starting lineup.
Here’s the takeaway….
– Randle buried three on his first shot and then Barrett got a steal and found Randle for another bucket as the Knicks took a 9-2 lead to open the game. Barrett missed threes on consecutive possessions like Donovan Mitchell He started going forward and the Cavs tied him up. Bronson picked up his second foul with 7:52 remaining in the first quarter, forcing a punt Emmanuel Quickly To participate in the game a little earlier than expected. Barrett found Robinson’s chop to cut an alley dunk to give New York the lead, but Isaac Okoro He tied it up and then Mitchell cut his way to the rim to put the Cavs up 17-15 and going strong Tom Thibodeau To call timeout with 4:53 left in the first.
Grimes put the Knicks up by a point, then three Josh Hart Scored on tip to make it 21-18 games. Randle drilled a step back with a triple to give the Knicks an eight-point lead, but Cleveland continued to keep it close. Evan Mobley Scored as time expired as the Knicks led 30-24. New York shot 45.5 percent in the first and went 7-for-8 at the foul line, while holding Cleveland to only shoot 1-for-8 from depth.
-Randell’s hot shooting continued to start in the second as he scored to give him 10 points on the night and the Knicks lead by double digits. Bronson was called out for his third foul with 9:12 left in the second, as Barrett replaced him on the court. Darius Garland He ended the Cavs’ scoring drought with a layup of three, then Mitchell made his way to the rim with a crossover to cut the Knicks’ lead to seven, forcing a timeout with 6:41 left in the half.
Barrett made his first field goal after starting 0-for-4, but Mitchell made consecutive baskets to keep it close. Randall was fouled hard on the bottom Jarrett Allen Mitchell stepped in to separate the two older men. Then Mitchell nailed three to give it his 12th straight for the Cavs to cut the Knicks’ lead to five.
New York won the second quarter, 21-20, but still led 50-45 in the second half. Randall led the Knicks with 16 points while Mitchell held the Cavs with 18 points. Both teams struggled shooting through two quarters, with the Knicks shooting 3-for-16 from three and the Cavs going 4-for-18 from deep.
After a sloppy start in the third quarter and a Mobley dunk cutting the Knicks lead to three, Tibbs called a timeout just one minute into the second half. Bronson scored on a floater in the fairway, but Mitchell came right back with a side-step 3 to tie the game at 54 apiece. Obi Tobin It opened in transition for a huge one-handed jam and then Bronson and Garland traded buckets. Barrett caught it with his first three after a 0-for-3 start from beyond the arc, and on his next possession found him Isaiah Hartenstein to get a close pontoon.
Bronson hit Toppin in the corner for a three-out, and a few possessions later found the former Top-10 selection in transition to go up 76-65. Hart grabbed another offensive board and scored on the inside as the Knicks hit their effort to close out the third. New York outscored Cleveland 28-25 in the quarter thanks to 12 points from Bronson and took a 78-70 lead going into fourth place.
-Randell elbowed Okoro in the face as he drove to the rim to commit his third foul, luckily he wasn’t called for a flagrant foul after the umpires reviewed the play. Hart grabbed his fourth offensive rebound and scored easily to push the Knicks’ lead to 10. Giving him 14 points on 7-for-8 shooting. After the Knicks grabbed three consecutive offensive rebounds, Randle connected with Robinson for a baseline touchdown.
Mitchell got back in a groove and scored 10 consecutive points for the Cavs to cut the deficit. Sir Othman He scored inside and then Allen put it ahead to give Cleveland a 93-92 lead with 2:12 remaining. Despite turning his ankle on an earlier play, Hart rolled a three to put the Knicks back up and Bronson followed with a midfield play to push the lead to four. Then the Villanova product exploded by Osman and lunged into a buoy with 35.4 seconds remaining. As the clock ticked down, Randle grabbed the biggest offensive rebound of the day after a Bronson foul and sent the ball to Grimes, who hit both bad shots of the game.
Bronson finished with 27 points in 30 minutes of action, Randle scored just 19 points and Hart finished with 17 points off the bench. Mitchell led all scorers with 38 points in 44 minutes. New York beat Cleveland 51-38 and won the bench battle, 37-14. The Knicks scored 26 points from 14 Cleveland turnovers.
Highlights
What then
The Knicks will remain in Cleveland and face the Cavs in Game 2 on Tuesday, April 18 at 7:30 p.m.