Collin Sexton led the Cavs to a 108-87 victory over the New York Knicks on Sunday night, scoring a career-high 31 points in the process.
Following his big game, the second-year point guard noted that he wanted to keep the defense honest:
“If they’re gonna sag off me, I got to show them I can shoot a little bit,” Sexton told cleveland.com after Sunday’s win. “I’ve got to make the defense play honest. I just knew what the defense was going to give me. I knew what type of shots I was going to get the entire night. Once I got it rolling, Darius (Garland), Larry (Nance Jr.), Kevin (Love), everybody found me and it was good. Together we had fun.”
Sexton had 22 points in his Madison Square Garden debut last season. He topped that mark on Sunday, racking up 31 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the field (5-of-8 from beyond the arc), three assists, two rebounds and one steal in 30 minutes of action. The former Alabama standout also finished with a plus/minus of plus-26.
Cavs coach John Beilein loved what he saw:
“Boy, he’s playing downhill,” Cavs head coach John Beilein said of Sexton after Sunday’s game. “And I thought there were a couple of times where he made great decisions playing downhill. (We) just love the way he attacks the basket.”
At the beginning of this season, there were lingering questions as to who would serve as the Cavs’ starting point guard. In the end, Beilein gave the nod to Darius Garland, the team’s No. 5 overall pick from this year’s draft. Sexton wasn’t left out, though. Instead, he was moved to the shooting guard position — a role that seems to be fitting his style of play.
With roles now established, Sexton says he and his teammates are having fun:
“We’re just playing together,” Sexton told FOX Sports Ohio after Sunday’s win. “We’re having fun. I feel like when we’re having fun, we’re at our best.”
Sexton and the Cavs improved to 4-5 with Sunday’s victory. They’ll close out a three-game road trip on Tuesday night with a matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Let’s see if they can keep their momentum rolling.