Knicks Defeat the Cavaliers at the Start of the Second Half

By Daniel Feuerstein | Cleveland, OH | November 7th, 2026

After the New York Knicks rampaged all over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden, they went on the road to face their Eastern Conference Finals foes, the Cleveland Cavaliers, at Rocket Mortgage Arena. After a tight first half till the final two minutes, the Knicks finally extended a double-digit lead and continued to add on in the second half. As much as the Cavaliers tried to cut the deficit, the Knicks kept extending and won by the final score of 109-97.

It was a back-and-forth first half for both teams as they kept changing leads during the first and third quarters of the second quarter. Once the Knicks grabbed the lead, they never let go and put themselves in a position to win. It was another example of the Knicks taking care of business against the Cavaliers after they swept them in the Eastern Conference Finals last season. Donovan Mitchell led all scorers with 37 points. Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 31 points. Karl-Anthony Towns was second on the Knicks and had another double-double with 29 points and 13 rebounds.

First Half: Battling for the lead till the Knicks took it to 10 points

The game was off to a great start between these two teams as they exchanged the lead. Donovan Mitchell was active, and Meleek Thomas was draining three-pointers. They were also active around the hoop and grabbed rebounds to put the ball back into play. Karl-Anthony Towns was strong at the rim as well, with some thunderous jams, and Jalen Brunson was active behind the three-point line. But when the game was within the final two to three minutes of the first half, that’s when they extended their lead and headed back to the locker room in a good position.

Second Half: The Knicks never let go and continued their dominance

When the third quarter began, the Knicks were showing their dominance to the Cavaliers. Even though they tried to cut their deficit down the road, the Knicks remained with a double-digit lead. The Knicks’ bench also came up big at important times, like Deuce McBride behind the three-point line and Jordan Clarkson, who created his own shots and took advantage either near the rim or behind the three-point line. They stayed strong, and when the clock was allowed to run down to zero, the Knicks were victorious once again over the Cavaliers.

KEY STATS:

NEW YORK: 41 FOR 95 FG’s, 14 FOR 44 3 PTERS, 13 FOR 14 FT’s
CLEVELAND: 35 FOR 82 FG”s, 16 FOR 50 3 PTERS, 11 FOR 19 FT”s
LARGEST LEAD: 19 POINTS IN THE THIRD QUARTER BY THE KNICKS
MOST POINTS: 37 POINTS IN THE SECOND QUARTER BY THE KNICKS