Cavaliers post wire-to-wire victory over Knicks

Collin Sexton scored a career-high 31 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers posted a wire-to-wire 108-87 victory over the New York Knicks on Sunday to win their 11th consecutive game at Madison Square Garden. The Cavaliers led by double digits for the last 30-plus minutes, won consecutive games for the first time this season and remained unbeaten in New York against the Knicks since Jan. 30, 2014. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it is the longest winning streak by any opposing team at Madison Square Garden.

Sexton helped the Cavaliers beat the Knicks for the 16th time in the last 18 overall meetings by shooting 10 of 16 and tying a career high with five 3-pointers. Kevin Love added 17 points and eight rebounds while reserve Jordan Clarkson also contributed 17 as the Cavaliers shot 43.9 percent (36 of 82) and made 28 of 31 free throws. Rookie point guard Darius Garland added 12 points for Cleveland.

The Knicks were unable to produce consecutive wins for the first time this season after getting a 106-102 win in Dallas on Friday and endured their third blowout loss in the last week. Julius Randle led the Knicks with 20 points and 16 rebounds, but New York shot a dreadful 36 percent (31 of 86), a woeful 64 percent (16 of 25) from the free-throw line and committed 21 turnovers. Allonzo Trier added 13 points and Damyean Dotson contributed 10, but Marcus Morris and rookie RJ Barrett were held to nine points apiece.

Sexton scored 11 points as the Cavaliers took their first double-digit lead nearly five minutes in and held a 31-19 lead after the opening quarter. Cleveland expanded its lead to 51-32 on a 3-pointer by Cedi Osman with 2:01 left and held a 54-36 lead at halftime. Cleveland scored the first seven points of the third to take a 25-point lead and loud boos cascaded the Knicks with about seven minutes left after Sexton's layup extended the lead to 68-42. Cleveland took its first 30-point lead on a layup by Osman with 5:54 remaining, but the Knicks closed the quarter on a 21-6 run and cut the deficit to 78-63 entering the fourth.

The Knicks were within 85-71 on a 3-pointer by Dotson with 9:38 remaining, but the Cavaliers finished it off with a 17-6 run that pushed the lead to 102-77 on Tristan Thompson's alley-oop dunk with 4:27 remaining. 

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