LeBron James tends to be at his best when the lights shine brightest at Madison Square Garden, and Wednesday was no exception.Matched up against a New York Knicks team that was riding a four-game winning streak, James finished with 25 points, seven assists and six rebounds in a 126-94 blowout win.FiveThirtyEight's Chris Herring provided an apt analogy for how Wednesday's drubbing unfolded:The Cavalierswho have won two in a row after losing three straightsit at 15-5 on the season. The Knicks dropped to 12-10 and 9-4 at home with the loss.While James was at the center of attention at the mecca of basketball, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love were both locked in. Irving dropped a team-high 28 points on 9-of-17 shooting and dished out six assists, while Love posted 21 points and four boards.According to The Vertical's Chris Mannix, Love has racked up numbers that should earn him a fourth All-Star nod when voting closes:Tristan Thompson also came to play. Despite scoring only three points and making zero shots from the field, Thompson made his presence felt with a season-high 20 reboundssix offensiveon a night when the Cavs bested the Knicks in every phase.One day removed from a win over the Miami Heat in which he poured in 35 points, Carmelo Anthony was silenced to the tune of eight points on 4-of-9 shooting. Brandon Jennings and Kristaps Porzingis added 16 and 12 points, respectively, but that wasn't enough against a Cavaliers team that was in command throughout.Not only did the Cavs lead by 15 at the halftime break, but they had also hit nine threes and scored 18 fast-break points during a 24-minute span that saw James, Irving and Love all crack double figures.As always, the focus was on LeBron.In the aftermath of the infamous "posse" comments made by Knicks president Phil Jackson, James appeared motivated to thrash New York in front of its home crowd.Newsday's Al Iannazzone noted as much in the first quarter:With the Cavs' lead building in advance of halftime, LeBron ramped the intensity up a notch and provided a pair of show-stopping playsincluding a monster semi-transition slamto send the Knicks sputtering into the locker room:ESPN The Magazine's Pablo S. Torre was in awe of James' jaw-dropping display:Plus, as Yahoo Sports' Dan Devine observed, the Knickswho lost to the Cavaliers by 29 points on opening nighthave yet to demonstrate an ability to play disciplined defense and hang tough with Cleveland for extended stretches:The Cavaliers bumped their lead up to 21 points less than three minutes into the second half, and they were able to coast from that point forward.Not only was the Knicks defense generally hapless, but Anthony and Porzingis were also both held in check as the offense struggled to find a groove with Derrick Rose (sore back) sidelined.Now it's on the Knicks to shape up as they prepare for a stretch that could define how they transition into the new year.Only 3-6 away from home, the Knicks are set to embark on a five-game road trip that includes matchups against the Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets.But first, the Knicks will square off against the Sacramento Kings in California's capital as they seek to quiet DeMarcus Cousins and Co. in a contest that will test their mettle.The Cavaliers will rest on the opposite end of the travel spectrum.In possession of back-to-back wins over Atlantic Division opponents, the Cavs will return to Quicken Loans Arena on Friday evening against the Heat for the start of a three-game homestand that includes meetings with the Charlotte Hornets and Memphis Grizzlies.Stats courtesy of NBA.com unless noted otherwise.
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