CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Cavaliers will host the New York Knicks in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Saturday night in Cleveland, trailing the series 2-0. The Cavaliers lost Game 2 by a score of 109-93 after the Knicks rallied from a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit to win Game 1 in overtime, 115-104.

Evan Mobley scored 10 points in the first quarter of Game 2 but added only four points in the second quarter and did not attempt a shot in the second half. His most notable sequence came late in the first quarter, when he drove the baseline and finished with a reverse left-handed dunk.

"When I'm out there on the court, I'm just trying to make winning plays. Early on, the best decision was me shooting the open ones, and they kept leaving me open, so I kept shooting it." Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley said.

Mobley is averaging 16.7 points per game in the playoffs, third on the team, and leads the Cavaliers with 8.3 rebounds per game. He has recorded 31 blocked shots in the postseason and has posted at least two blocks in nine consecutive playoff games, the second-longest streak in franchise history. In Game 1, he finished with 15 points, 14 rebounds, three assists and three blocked shots.

Cavaliers guard James Harden addressed the team's offensive execution in Game 2. "That's on all of us. We do have to get the ball in there more, I think we got away from our pick-and-roll a little bit more." Harden said.

Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, who is shooting 57.1% from the foul line in the playoffs after making 70.9% during the regular season, said the team's bigs could take more initiative offensively. "Sometimes I feel like we can just go set the pick, stop waiting for a play, stop waiting for somebody to call us up, and just run the offense from ourselves, not necessarily taking the ball and bringing it up the court, but initiating the offense by just going and setting a screen out of the blue." Allen said.

As a team, the Cavaliers are 38 for 55 (69.1%) from the free throw line through the first two games of the series. All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell showed limited burst on drives and lift on jump shots in Game 2.

Cleveland enters Game 3 with a 6-1 home record in the postseason and a 19-4 mark as the host team since January 23. The Milwaukee Bucks overcame 2-0 deficits twice during the 2021 playoffs on their way to the franchise's first NBA title in 50 years. Mobley said the Cavaliers' path forward is straightforward. "We've just got to win these next two at home and keep it moving."