What We Learned: Cavs vs Knicks
The Cavs started off the game playing fairly well in the first quarter. But, once again, they played very poorly until the second half of the fourth quarter and found a way to extend their winning streak to five games. The Cavs were able to secure the victory by playing solid defense down the stretch and hitting big time shots. Here are some things we can take away from the game.
• The Cavs fourth quarter defense won the game for them. The Knicks did not score a single point in the last three minutes of play. The Cavs found a way to hold the Knicks to only fourteen points in the fourth quarter. They did not play outstanding defense throughout the game, but they proved they can play great D when they need to.
• The Cavs defense played well down the stretch, but they continue to struggle with the opposing team’s second unit. Tim Hardaway Jr. scored a team high 20 points in only 21 minutes of play. The Cavs can’t keep letting bench players burn them like this. They were however able to hold Carmelo Anthony to only 9 points. Another player they let do this to them, off the bench, is Lou Williams on Toronto, a few weeks back.
• LeBron should relish the role of being the play maker on this team. He finished the night with nineteen points and twelve assists. LeBron doesn’t need to shoot the ball to be a dominant offensive player.
• Kyrie Irving is good at basketball! Really good! Kyrie finished the game with 37 points on 12-18 shooting. He has become an elite scorer in this league. He scored 37 points while playing within his game and not forcing bad shots. He carried this team through offensive lulls and provided the spark when they needed it most. He made a crucial layup with ten seconds left to put the Cavs up three and locked up the win for the Cavs. Irving is making his case for why he should be considered the best point guard in the East. He also might be the best closer on this team.
@CST_JacksonF
