The Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks are playing at MSG on Friday and the game has LeBron James up against Carmelo Anthony starting up at 7:30 pm ET. The matchup is on TV from NBATV and comes after the Cavs won the first battle between the two teams at home in Cleveland.
The Cavaliers are 7-1 this season despite playing without Kyrie Irving, while the Knicks are 4-5 and looking better than many expected. Kristaps Porzingis has played above expectations and now he will get another chance at the Cavs after Cleveland won the first game 96-86. The Knicks were leading the game for a stretch in that matchup and the team kept things close, but by the end the Cavs were able to pull away and get the victory.
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Check here for the stats, score, updates and play by play for the game.
The Cavs did a good job keeping the Knicks from getting open looks in the last game and the team ended up shooting less than 40 percent. Carmelo Anthony has struggled a bit to start the season, but he comes in after having a couple solid games and now he will battle his good friend LeBron at home at MSG. Mo Williams and Matthew Dellavedova have been getting playing time with Irving out and that should continue on Friday night.
Kevin Love has become more of a focal point for the Cavs offense and that is one reason why the team has been off to a strong start. The Cavs have won seven straight games since losing a close game to the Bulls on opening night and now they will try and go for number eight against the Knicks. The Knicks come into the game after a 95-93 loss against the Hornets and that game saw the team put in a buzzer shot at the end to win, but it ended up being too late on replay and it did not count.
The Cavs come in after getting a close win against the Jazz and that victory was fueled by James, who scored 17 points in the final quarter to help his team win. James had 31 points for the Cavaliers and now he comes into the game looking to have his team match their best start in a few decades. JR Smith has returned for the Cavaliers and he will be playing back in New York after the team previously traded him last season. Arron Afflalo is back after dealing with a hamstring injury earlier in the year and he will be looking to get things going after scoring 12 points in his Knicks debut.
