CLEVELAND -- First he tore open his shirt, then LeBron James tore open the game.

James scored 23 points and grabbed five rebounds, but more importantly took over the fourth quarter of the Cleveland Cavaliers' 96-86 win over the New York Knicks on Wednesday.

Frustrated by his play and his tough shooting night, James tore open the sleeves on his jersey in the midst of a 4 of 11 shooting half. It wasn't his first battle with the sleeved look. James openly complained about them in March 2014 when he first wore them with the Miami Heat. This time, however, he took the blame for his tough night.

"I was just frustrated with myself a lot," he said. "I was just off rhythm a lot. The jersey was the only thing I could go to. I couldn't do nothing to my face."

James didn't shoot the ball any better in the second half, but he took over the game in the fourth quarter.

Mo Williams scored 22 points, Kevin Love scored 11 points and grabbed 12 rebounds and Tristan Thompson had 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Cavs.

Forward Carmelo Anthony scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds and rookie forward Kristaps Porzingis scored 13 points for the Knicks.

James scored 11 points in the fourth quarter, including six straight. His 3-pointer with four minutes left -- just his second of the season -- extended the Cavs' lead to 87-79. James was 1 of 16 on 3-pointers this year prior to that basket.

The Knicks shot 62 percent in the first quarter and led 32-18 entering the second, but couldn't pull away. They shot 32 percent and managed just 54 points over the final three quarters.

At one point in the third quarter, the Cavs were shooting 12 percent on 3-pointers and 50 percent from the free-throw line, yet the Knicks' lead was only six.

"We just don't understand quite yet how to win collectively as a group," Knicks coach Derek Fisher said. "Playing from behind on the road after getting off to a good start, we weren't able to compete."

The Knicks didn't trail until the final minute of the third quarter. The Cavs took their first lead on Matthew Dellavedova's lob to Thompson to give the Cavs a 70-69 lead.

"We didn't have our fastball tonight," Cavs coach David Blatt said. "Sometimes you have to win it with the curve or the changeup. We had to fight through some frustration, some good play from the Knicks. We didn't shoot it well at all. But we did find the pitches, we did find the way to win the game."

Sleeved jerseys were introduced to the NBA two years ago, but this was the Cavs' first time wearing them. James grumbled that the shirt was pulling under his arm when he was forced to wear it two years ago, but blamed himself this time and said he'd be fine wearing it again if the fans like them.

"It might be mental," he said. "It's OK. The jerseys look nice. We love the jerseys. The black looks great. ... I was just in my own way. I was a little frustrated with my shot, couldn't make a bucket so I had to take it out on something."

He wasn't the only one pulling at it. Love pulled up the sleeve on his right arm while shooting free throws later in the second quarter, although no other players went so far as to tear them. It remains to be seen whether James' stunt will elicit a response from the league, but the NBA does not force the sleeved jerseys onto teams. They choose to use them at their own discretion.

"It was a little tight," Anthony joked of the jerseys. "It was probably restricting (James') shot a little bit."

NOTES: F Carmelo Anthony remains close to Cavs G J.R. Smith and G Iman Shumpert from their time together with the Knicks. "It seems like LeBron took my family away from me," Anthony joked. ... While Anthony recently surpassed 21,000 career points, F LeBron James recently passed 25,000. "That's a big moment, a guy who I have known since high school," Anthony said. "That's a helluva mark to reach and we all know how hard he worked to get to that point." ... James served as the Cavs' de facto point guard for much of last season, but has moved back off the ball this season. The Cavs entered Wednesday averaging 27 assists per game, second in the league behind the Golden State Warriors. ... F Richard Jefferson started at guard Wednesday in place of G J.R. Smith, who is expected to miss Friday's game against the Philadelphia 76ers and perhaps Sunday's game against the Indiana Pacers with an injured knee.