Immanuel Quickley fell flat on his face and made a swimming move with his arms and legs after hitting his third of five points out of 3 on Friday night.
The electrifying debutant guard helped the Knicks back against the current after three straight losses to end their recent trip, scoring 25 points in 23 minutes off the bench, including 14 in the fourth period, in the 102-81 victory over Cleveland in the Garden .
The Knicks (9-11) held Andre Drummond with just four points – albeit with 15 rebounds – in another strong defensive effort, despite nine combined fouls between Mitchell Robinson and Nerlens Noel.
Darius Garland had 24 points for the Cavaliers, who scored just 37 in the first half and 55 in three quarters. The 81 points were the second lowest number of points allowed by the Knicks this season, behind only the 75 they won for the Celtics on January 17.
RJ Barrett contributed 24 points, Austin Rivers with 13 on 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 continues to put pressure on point guard Elfrid Payton (two points in 23 minutes) for playing time, also converted the Knicks’ first 4-point play of the season, with four minutes to go before the fourth period ended. Kentucky’s 25th overall pick hit just 1 to 11 off the ground in Tuesday’s Utah loss, a game after reaching his career 31 record in the previous game in Portland.
Robinson said before the game that he was focused on his fight with Drummond, who dominated the 106-103 victory over the Knicks on January 15 with 33 points and 23 rebounds.
“Oh, definitely. Tonight I’m going to play a lot smarter. I will go out here and fetch, do my best, ”said Robinson, who scored six points and committed five fouls on Friday night.
Robinson also had a minus 15 in Tuesday’s loss in Utah and was topped on the stats sheet by All-Star center Rudy Gobert (18 points and 19 rebounds).
Asked if he imagines eventually presenting numbers like those of Drummond and Gobert, Robinson added: “I know I can defend. I don’t really compare myself to other players. I mean, I’m concerned about our team. Other players can talk about whatever they want. I’m just talking about us as Knicks. “
The Knicks missed eight of nine shots and saw Cleveland a quick 13-3 lead, but Rivers and Quickley combined for a dozen points during a 16-4 run for a two-point lead at the end of the quarter.
Randle did not attempt a field goal until the second quarter was four minutes away, but his 19-foot jump, two dunks from Robinson, put the Knicks at 38-31. Two attempts and a corner three from Barrett increased the Knicks’ lead to 14, and they took a 47-33 lead to the break.
Drummond scored just four points in the first half, but Noel was whistled for three fouls and Robinson, two, generating veteran big time Taj Gibson’s first appearance – albeit for just a minute – since he signed to return to the Knicks on January 7.
The Cavs threw just 29 percent off the ground and hit 2 out of 10 in the 3-point range in two quarters, but Sexton and Garland combined 16 points in a 19-2 wave to open the third and help narrow the gap to 52 – 49.
The Knicks reheated with a 12-1 streak to close the quarter, however, including a base dunk for a three-point play by Quickley and a three-point final by the novice point guard for a 72-55 lead entering the fourth.