Would you believe me if I said that Donovan Mitchell scored less than half of the points that he scored in Game 1 in Game 2, but the New York Knicks still lost by double-digits? You better believe it. Darius Garland had the game of his life, leading Cleveland to the 107-90 win over New York to tie the series at 1-1.
Garland finished with 32 points (8-of-17) and seven assists in 36 minutes. He posted a career-high 26 points in the first half. That speaks to what kind of game it was for the struggling Knicks, who looked like they had forgotten how to play basketball altogether.
While Cleveland’s guards thrived, New York’s guards struggled. Jalen Brunson had an off night, shooting 5-of-17 from the field for 20 points. Quentin Grimes couldn’t get anything to fall as he shot 0-of-2 for four points. Immanuel Quickley finally had a shot fall in the third quarter and started to heat up in the fourth but it was too late at that point.
Not only was Garland impossible to stop, but Caris LeVert had a bounce-back game and posted 24 points (9-of-16) in 39 minutes. LeVert was doing so well that he replaced Isaac Okoro to start the third quarter. LeVert said before the series began that the Cavaliers had the best bench depth in the league, and on Tuesday, the Knicks were outmatched entirely in all aspects of the game.
Darius Garland embarrasses Knicks in poor 107-90 Game 2 loss to Cavaliers
Maybe Darius Garland needed Game 1 to shake off any nerves in his playoff debut because in Game 2, it looked as if he had been playing on this big of a stage for the majority of his career.
Darius Garland dropped 26 first half points vs. the Knicks 🔥
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 19, 2023
He joins LeBron and Kyrie as the only Cavs with more than 25 points in a playoff half over the last 25 seasons 📈 pic.twitter.com/htuKOUNfDQ
Even Immanuel Quickley couldn’t stop Garland. After being a force off the bench for the majority of the regular season, IQ has forgotten how to show up in this series when it matters. Tom Thibodeau had to turn to Miles McBride to guard Garland, who came in late in the third quarter and actually forced a stop.
After watching a Knicks game where everything possible that could go wrong did go wrong, the good news is that the series is headed to New York. Games 3 and 4 will be held at Madison Square Garden. There’s only one cure for a loss this bad, and it’s MSG playoff basketball. Let’s hope that the Knicks remember to show up in this game.
Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau has simple yet hilarious response to Isaac Okoro
Ahead of Knicks-Cavaliers Game 2 on Tuesday, New York head coach Tom Thibodeau was asked about Isaac Okoro's comments about Jalen Brunson.