Immanuel Quickley fell face down on the field and made a swimming movement with his arms and legs after closing the third of the five points with 3 points on Friday night.
The rookie’s electrifying defender helped the Knicks return upstream after three consecutive losses to end their recent journey, scoring 25 points in 23 minutes on the bench, including 14 in the fourth quarter, in a 102-win victory. -81 over Cleveland in the garden.
The Knicks (9-11) held back Andre Drummond, the All-Star man, by just four points – albeit with 15 rebounds – in another strong defensive effort, despite the nine combined mistakes between centers Mitchell Robinson and Nerlens Noel.
Darius Garland had 24 points for the riders, who scored only 37 in the first half and 55 in three quarters. The 81 points were the fewest points allowed by this Knicks this season, behind only the 75 they kept the Celtics on January 17.
RJ Barrett contributed 24 points, Austin Rivers added 13 from the bench and Julius Randle finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Knicks, who will face the Los Angeles Clippers at home on Sunday.
Quickley, who continue to press starting goalkeeper Elfrid Payton (two points in 23 minutes) for game time, also turned the Knicks’ first 4-point play of the season into the fourth quarter with four minutes left. Kentucky’s 25th general election shot just 1 to 11 from the floor in Tuesday’s loss to Utah in a game after a career high in the previous game in Portland.
Robinson had said before the game that he was focused on his match with Drummond, who dominated in a 106-103 victory over the Knicks on January 15 with 33 points and 23 rebounds.
“Surely. Tonight I will play much smarter. I will go out here and go after him, he will give me everything I can “, said Robinson, who scored six points and committed five fouls on Friday night.
Robinson was also minus-15 in Tuesday’s loss to Utah and outscored All-Star center Rudy Gobert (18 points and 19 rebounds).
Asked if he intends to put up numbers like Drummond and Gobert in the end, Robinson added: “I know I can defend myself. I don’t compare myself to other players. I mean, I’m worried about our team. Other players can talk about anything they want to talk about. I’m just talking about us as Knicks. ”
The Knicks missed eight of the nine shots and saw Cleveland 13-3, but Rivers and Quickley combined for a dozen points during a 16-4 halftime for a two-point lead until the end of the quarter. .
Randle didn’t try to score until four minutes left in the second quarter, but his 19-foot jump, two dunks from Robinson, lifted the Knicks 38-31. Two units and a three-pointer from Barrett extended Knicks’ lead to 14, and they took a 47-33 lead at 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 senior veteran Taj Gibson – albeit only for a minute – since he signed to return to Knicks on January 7th. .
The Cavs shot just 29 percent off the floor and were 2-for-10 in the 3-point range through two quarters, but Sexton and Garland combined for 16 points in a 19-2 wave for to open the third to help reduce the gap to 52 -49.
The Knicks reheated with a 12-1 round to close out the quarter, however, including a base shot for a three-point play by Quickley and a three-pointer by the rookie keeper for a 72-55 lead that went in. in the fourth.