NEW YORK – โThe โฃNew York Knicks and head coach mike Brown began their partnership with a decisiveโ 121-108 victory โover theโฃ Cleveland โฃCavaliers at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday, October 22,โฃ 2025. The win showcased a commitment to ball movement, defensive intensity, andโข a โdeeper โขbench than lastโ season.
The Knicks โutilizedโฃ an 11-man rotation early in โฃthe game, finishingโข with 22 assists as a โteam. RJ Barrett โขled all scorersโ with 24 points, while OG Anunoby contributed 19 and Mikal Bridges โคadded 16.
Bridges โขproved to be a catalyst for the Knicks’ energetic โขplay, particularly on defense.โ Brown โpreviously โฃpraised Bridges’ “next-play speed” duringโ the preseason, describing โit โฃasโข a model for the entire team. Bridges’ impact was immediately evident,โ highlighted by โฃa strip of Jaylon tysonโค leading to an uncontested layup during a personal 7-0 โฃrun that extended the Knicks’โค lead to 26-16 in the first quarter.โข He started the game making โคhisโฃ first โฃfour field goal โattempts.
Despite being withoutโ key rebounders Josh Hart and Mitchell robinson, New York dominated โฃthe boards, finishing โwith a 46-32 โrebounding advantage, including โa 9-4 edge onโฃ the offensiveโค glass.
The Cavaliers mountedโ a 16-2 run โฃinโข the second quarter to close the gap to one point, but a โcombined 10 points from Landry Shamet and Miles โMcBride helpedโ the Knicks regain control.
New York’s bench โคoutscored Cleveland’s reserves 35-30. Tyler Kolek โreceived extended playing time and demonstrated potential as Jalen Brunson’s primary backup at point guard, whileโข Guerschon โขYabusele, Jordan Clarkson, trey โคjamison III, and Ariel Hukporti – who started atโ center โin place of Robinsonโ – all provided valuable minutes.
