The New York Knicks have done a solid job creating doubters of “Believeland.”

Less than a week after clobbering the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Arena, the Knicks get another shot at their fellow Eastern Conference finalist on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden. New York previously took a 109-97 final from the Cavs over the weekend, part of an active four-game winning streak that’s tied with Boston for the longest active tally in the East.

Wednesday marks an instant return to action for the Knicks, who are fresh off a 117-85 handling of the woebegone Milwaukee Bucks at MSG. New York took a double-figure lead in the second quarter and never looked back, taking advantage of the lack of Miami-bound Giannis Antetokounmpo in more ways than one.

Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond almost outrebounded the Bucks on their own with 30 combined rebounds, two fewer than Milwaukee mustered as a team. Jalen Brunson had 23 points in the win, one of which served to be the 11,000th point of his NBA career

The Cavaliers come into this rematch on the wrong side of one of the more embarrassing losses of the young NBA season, dropping a 124-112 decision to the severely depleted Charlotte Hornets on Monday night. Cleveland fell behind by as much as 33 and was primarily sustained by an 18-point night in relief from Meleek Thomas. Cleveland fell to 1-4 on the road with the loss.

This will be the first time the Cavs visit MSG since Game 2 of last spring’s conference final, when the Knicks notched a 109-93 victory en route to a series sweep. Josh Hart led the way with 26 points while Brunson (19 points, 14 assists) and Towns (18 points, 13 rebounds) both had double-doubles.

The Cavs were 0-4 at MSG last year, dropping both the conference final opener they led by 22 and the Christmas Day opener. This is the second of four meetings between the Knicks and Cavs, with another slated for 7th Avenue in two weeks.

What To Know

What: Cleveland Cavaliers (5-6) @ New York Knicks (6-4)
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
When: Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET, MSG/ESPN/DAZN
Wager: NYK —4.5 (o/u 222.5)

Keep An Eye On: Landry Shamet

Shamet has been stationed in the starting five thanks to Josh Hart’s ankle issues. He may be too invaluable of a secondary weapon to make that promotion permanent, but he’s certainly giving the Knicks maybe at least a little something to think about.

Shamet is known for his deep ball and has lived up to that reputation with 10 triples in the last quartet. His defense, however, has been equally impressive, if not more so.

Among men to start at least three games so far this season, Shamet ranks second in defensive rating, behind only newly-minted metropolitan public enemy Victor Wembanyama.

It’s rare to see a depth star simultaneously engage in both the finesse and grit an x-factor is required to master. Shamet is seamlessly taking care of it, and the Knicks’ title defense is far better off for it.

Cav to Watch: James Harden

The Cavs appear to be getting the speed-run of the Harden experience.

They looked like championship contenders upon his entry, before settling for fourth place and enduring postseason heartbreak. Less than a year after the deal with the Los Angeles Clippers was signed, it feels like Cleveland is already coming to regret bringing him back on an eight-figure extension.

Over his last four games, Harden has shot just over 31% from the field and has lost a dozen turnovers. The Cavs are minus-37 on the scoreboard during his minutes in the last two games.

It feels like ancient history for some reason, but this was once the hand the Knicks were dealt, one where they relied on polarizing stars to guide them out of the mire of mediocrity. That appears to be backfiring for the Cavs at this point, and Harden needs a big game sooner rather than later to make things right.

They Said It

“I try to keep things as consistent as possible. In the past in my career, if it was a spot start or a stretch of them, I think I made the mistake of trying to change too much, or think I had to change a lot, or do something differently, or be something different. Just because I’m starting, the reality is it’s the same basketball game. You can create different reasons as to why it’s different. But for me, and I think the whole goal for anybody, is setting yourself up for success, and for me that just looks like keeping things as standard and concise as possible.” —Shamet on his current approach as a starter (h/t Stefan Bondy, New York Post)

“I would just say there was no coach more complimentary of the Knicks and honest about our performance and how they dominated us. So you live and learn a little bit with those things. But like I said, 99 percent of my comments were how they dominated us. They were by far the better team. I answered the question, as it was taken, (which was) ‘you’re down 3-0, what hope do you have of even giving to your guys? We get a lot of information … and I wasn’t lying in that sense, but in no sense was it like, ‘Oh, man, we deserve to be winning.’ Like zero — zero — thought of that.” —Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson revisiting his “analytical” victory comments from last year’s ECF (h/t Joe Vardon, The Athletic)

Prediction: Knicks 114, Cavs 103

Five from New York, it’s another Knicks victory.

Once the hardwood calendar flipped, “Knicks in five” went from a metropolitan greeting to a mantra of solace after the team’s slow start to its championship defense. The Knicks, however, have found their groove and then some, giving them a prime opportunity to make a statement against a recurring foe before facing formidable competition on a four-game road trip.

Coming off a back-to-back may somewhat complicate some of the more testy portions of the game, but there’s little reason not to expect the Knicks to add to a downtrodden opponent’s already sizable woes.

Knicks in five? Knicks get five.