Live Thread: Cavs @ Knicks

“WELCOME TO MADISON SQUARE GARDEN! THE WORLD’S MOST FAMOUS ARENA!”

This is the traditional refrain that will come blaring over the public address system just before tipoff of tonight’s game at The Garden, as the Cavs make their first stop on a three game road trip to face the Knicks in the Big Apple. And truly, even despite the more recent struggles of New York’s basketball team, there might be no bigger basketball stage than what many refer to as the “Mecca” of the sport — including the King himself…

“If I could have 82 regular-season games in the Garden,” James said last February to the New York Post, “I would because it’s the Mecca of basketball.”

People have claimed that there’s an almost spiritual feeling that overcomes you from just being inside the circular arena in the heart of Manhattan, and looking up and seeing the names of legendary athletes and performers hanging in the rafters. It’s where Willis Reed, famously limped onto the floor to rescue the Knicks in Game 7 of the 1971 NBA Finals, giving the team their first ever championship. It hosted the 1951 fight where the young Rocky Marciano knocked out his hero Joe Louis and proceeded to cry, and also the “Fight of the Century” when an undefeated Joe Frazier beat an undefeated Muhammad Ali.

The list of iconic moments at The Garden stretches even beyond sports. President John F. Kennedy was here for his birthday in 1962, when Marilyn Monroe performed the most infamous rendition of “Happy Birthday” known to man. MSG was also the home for the famous 1971 benefit concert for Bangladesh, a philanthropic endeavor that was repeated in 2001 after 9/11, in 2005 in response to Hurricane Katrina, and in 2012 after Hurricane Sandy.

The Cavs will look to make a little history of their own tonight, as they attempt to win their eighth straight to start the season at 8-1 for the first time since 1976-77. Cleveland has a three game winning streak at The Garden, and won the first meeting with the Knicks at the Q a week ago, so it’s likely New York will be looking to even the score, and their own record at 5-5. To accomplish this, however, they’ll need a better performance from Carmelo Anthony who was outscored 11-2 by LeBron in the fourth quarter of the first meeting, as the Cavs came back from a 15 point deficit.

Starting lineup for the Cavs: Mo Williams, J.R. Smith, LeBron James, Kevin Love and Timofey Mozgov. And for the Knicks: Jose Calderon, Arron Afflalo, Carmelo Anthony, Kristaps Porzingis and Robin Lopez.

Tip off is at 7:30 p.m. (EST), and the game can be seen on Fox Sports Ohio and NBATV, and heard on 1100 WTAM.

Tune in and catch all of the action… If you’re lucky, you might just see a little history being made…

GO CAVS!