:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/30572539/20140323_ads_ag9_161.0.jpg)
Well, y'all fucked up pretty badly this time, Knicks. New York led by 17 points late in the first half despite letting the Cavaliers run roughshod over their defense. They were just that hot. In the second half, the Knicks got sticky and cold and the Cavs ran even roughshod-er.
The Cleveland Cavaliers-- the seventh least-efficient offense in the NBA-- shot 23-30 in the second half thanks to a textbook FARTDOG defense rife with pick-and-roll miscommunication and negligence of the three-point line. TWENTY-THREE OF THIRTY. Jarrett Jack and Carmelo Anthony went head to head in the fourth and Jack won the battle by a longshot. While Melo bricked in isolation, Jack, ever the Knick-killer, set a season-high with 31, including the dagger jumper over the only moment of decent defense Raymond Felton played all night.
Bad, bad beat. The Knicks missed an opportunity to gain ground on Atlanta and, while it probably doesn't matter, gave the Cavs a little boost in their own pursuit of the eighth seed. There goes the streak. I'm kinda surprised it lasted that long, but it was a good run. Semi-good.