Cavs Game 1 Loss To The Knicks Full Of Missed Opportunities
The Cleveland Cavaliers loss to the New York Knicks can be summed up in one phrase, missed opportunities. The Cavs really didn't make it easy for themselves during this one.
First up, the Cavs were not great from the free-throw line at all. They shot 71 percent from the charity stripe as a team, including two missed free throws by Darius Garland and two more misses from Donovan Mitchell.
While this doesn't happen often, even if each of them makes even one more free throw then this game could've ended much differently.
The Cavs also missed a number of open shots. Caris LeVert and Ricky Rubio missed pretty clear layups in the first half which left four more points on the board.
One of the biggest missed opportunities for Cleveland came when Jalen Bruson was sitting on the bench. The Knicks' point guard got into early foul trouble which meant he missed most of the first half. Brunson played less than three minutes in the second quarter alone which should've been a big advantage for Cleveland, but the Cavs only outscored New York 21-20 in the quarter.
This is when the Cavs should've stepped their foot on the gas to put pressure on the Knicks with their defense. However, Cleveland allowed New York's bench to put on a show which kept them in the game.
Perhaps most notably, the Cavs were out-rebounded by 13 on the night - including by 12 boards in the second half. The Knicks grabbed offensive rebounds on almost half of their second half misses.
Brunson still scored 27 points despite playing only 29 minutes in the game. Brunson is a smart enough player that he won't allow himself to get in foul trouble like this for the rest of the series so the Cavs really failed to benefit in Game 1.
Even though the Cavs did not capitalize in the series opener, they still only lost by four points. They should be in a good position if they're able to regroup and smooth out the edges before Game 2 on Tuesday night.
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