Cavs are officially fighting to keep their season alive with a 2-0 deficit. Yankee Scores breaks down how the Knicks’ ball movement is exposing the Cavs’ perimeter defense. 

The Knicks grabbed a sizable cushion midway through the second half and proceeded to win by 16 points, which was a bit different from what Cleveland did in Game 1. The Knicks take the series 2-0 as the action moves to Cleveland on Saturday.

Knicks went into Game 2 with the momentum and home-court advantage since they were able to score 44 points while holding the Cavs to 11 in the final minutes of Game 1. Cleveland played a little better in the opening half before falling apart in the first quarter of the third.

The 18-0 Avalanche

The Cavaliers managed to tie it up briefly with a 5-0 run, but the Knicks quickly responded with an 18-0 run to take the kind of lead that Cleveland was unable to overcome in the first game.

Brunson starting to cook pic.twitter.com/YmZKjwmGLZ

— Ben Stiller (@BenStiller) May 22, 2026

While Cavaliers did cut it to seven midway through the fourth quarter, their poor free-throw shooting made it impossible for them to come all the way back.

Knicks’ largest lead occurred with under three minutes remaining.

Knicks guard Josh Hart scored a career playoff high 26 points on 10-of-21 shooting (5-of-11 from beyond the arc), along with seven assists and defensive work against Cleveland’s guards.

need a bucket? call 0️⃣0️⃣ https://t.co/nuhNdmaOet

— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) May 22, 2026

The Defensive Trap That Snapped shut

The Cavs started off Game 2 allowing Hart to take wide open jumpers, and for whatever reason it worked in Cleveland’s favor, as he missed four of his first five tries. It didn’t work anymore than that.

Fortunately, this helped offset the fact that Jalen Brunson got off to a poor start as he only had two points at the half but ended up scoring 19 points and dishing out 14 assists.

The Game 1 Domino Effect

There’s definitely a domino effect of Game 1 showing in this one. Had Cavs played any defense down the stretch on Tuesday night, they would be tied at 1-1 and own home court in Game 3.

Cavs find themselves one win away from sweeping a team that entered the playoffs with this type of aura surrounding them. No owner wants to have to motivate their players via Twitter after two losses.

Should Cavs lose in Game 3, coming back from a 3-0 deficit may be almost impossible for them.