Cavs can't muster enough offense, fall to Knicks 4-1 in NBA Playoffs Round 1 series

CLEVELAND — The Cavaliers had a chance Wednesday night to prove they could go from rattled at Madison Square Garden to revived at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

However, Cleveland failed to accomplish the mission.

The Cavs were eliminated in the first round of the NBA playoffs by falling to the New York Knicks 106-95 in Game 5 of the best-of-seven series between the Eastern Conference foes.

The Cavs lost the series 4-1, with their lone victory coming in Game 2 on April 18 in Cleveland. They couldn't maintain their momentum after the blowout win, dropping Game 3 and Game 4 in New York.

Cavs vs. Knicks Game 5 replay: How Cleveland fared in a win-or-go-home scenario in the NBA playoffs

Cavs vs. Knicks Game 5 replay: How Cleveland fared in a win-or-go-home scenario in the NBA playoffs

It all led to a do-or-die Game 5 for the Cavs, and now their 2022-23 season has been buried earlier than most expected.

Despite their season being on the line, the Cavs never held a lead Wednesday.

The Cavs went 51-31 in the regular season to earn the East's fourth seed and home-court advantage in Round 1. The fifth-seeded Knicks were 47-35 in the regular season.

But disadvantages in the matchup and inexperience in the postseason haunted the Cavs, whose turnovers and missed assignments plagued Cleveland for most of the series.

“I think we were a little rattled,” Cavs center Jarrett Allen said Wednesday morning during shootaround.

All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell led the Cavs with 28 points in Game 5. Point guard Darius Garland and small forward Caris LeVert added 21 and 17 points, respectively.

Guard Jalen Brunson and forward RJ Barrett powered the Knicks with 23 and 21 points.

The Knicks dominated the Cavs in rebounding for the vast majority of the season and earned a Game 5 advantage of 48-30, including 17-4 on the offensive end of the floor. The Knicks had 20 second-chance points compared with three for the Cavs.

The Knicks also edged the Cavs in bench scoring 32-19. Knicks sixth man Immanuel Quickley's 19 points matched the Cavs' entire bench.

The Cavs fought back from the 18-point deficit they faced with 3:37 remaining in the third quarter and trailed by six points when Garland made a jump shot with 8:10 left in the fourth quarter.

Yet the Cavs didn't come any closer to completing a comeback.

With Josh Hart's pass to Mitchell Robinson for an alley-oop, the Knicks extended their lead to 96-84 with 6:16 left.

Shortly before the Cavs entered halftime with a 61-51 deficit, Knicks All-Star power forward Julius Randle left the game with a left ankle injury. He did not return to the action.

Randle grabbed the ankle and exited the action with 1:17 left, briefly sitting on the bench before heading to the locker room with 13 points, six assists and four rebounds in 16 minutes. He missed the final five games of the regular season because he had sprained the same ankle.

Obi Toppin replaced Randle to start the third quarter and scored the Knicks' first seven points of the second half. Toppin finished with 12 points after going scoreless in the first half.

Still, the Cavs rallied. LeVert's 3-pointer with 6:24 left in the third quarter cut the Knicks' lead to 74-63 after New York had led by 16 points moments earlier. LeVert's reverse layup with 5:21 left in the third quarter trimmed the Knicks' advantage to nine points.

But the Knicks responded with a 9-0 run led by Toppin, who made a 3-pointer and a fast-break dunk during the sequence. They led 87-75 entering the fourth quarter.

With the shot clock winding down, Garland made a 3-pointer on an assist from LeVert to cut the Cavs' disadvantage to 88-80 with 9:39 left in the fourth quarter.

Down the stretch, though, the Cavs couldn't do enough to stay alive.

Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Impressive Cavs season comes to an end with series loss against Knicks