CLEVELAND — Interim coach Mike Miller’s defense is back. Or the Cavaliers are just too horrible for words.

Amid a 1-8 stretch, the Knicks got strong production from their forward tandem Marcus Morris and Julius Randle, each scoring 19 points, as the days to the trade-deadline tick down.

The Knicks also got an awakening from reserve guard Damyean Dotson (12 points) and another tenacious defensive performance in a 106-86 Martin Luther King Day romp over the Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

After nearly upsetting the Sixers on Saturday, losing a one-point lead in the final 30 seconds and holding them to 90 points, the Knicks stole a road win in stopping John Beilein’s rebuilding Cavs stone cold. Cleveland shot 34 percent and both teams ended the day with 12-32 records.

The only down note was Morris injured his ankle in the third quarter after executing a four-point play. Though he went to the locker room to get taped up and returned, he said afterward he’s no guarantee for Wednesday’s showdown with the Lakers at the Garden.

The Knicks have to decide by the Feb. 6 trade deadline whether Morris and Randle are the forwards they want to build around. If they don’t trade either, there will be pressure to sign Morris in July. Randle is locked up for three years, with the third year a team option.

There’s some who wonder if it’s the right combination. Monday it looked right.

“We’ve just got to keep working, keep getting better, take it game by game,’’ Randle said. “It’s not like we’ve been playing together for 10 years. This is our first half a season together and we’ve just got to keep working, keep getting better together.”

The Knicks have received interest from teams on both players. Trading Randle would open more leeway to make the resurgent Morris a building block for the future. But Morris is 30. Randle is just 25 but has holes in his game.

“Any concern?” Randle said. “Nah, bro. Honestly, I ain’t worried about it. You start — my sixth year, you start to realize this is a business. You can’t worry about what you can’t control.’’

The Cavaliers entered the fourth quarter with just 64 points as Miller continued to ride his veterans.

“When we’re going those stretches and getting a bunch of stops, we feed off of that,’’ Miller said. “Our defense winds up being solid. When it’s trading baskets, when we can get two, three stops that leads to two, three more. We put together consecutive stops and we were able to rebound it in the second half. That gave us a chance.’’

Miller said the Knicks tightened up their defensive rebounding in the second half as they pounded Cleveland, 30-14 to lead 79-64 after three.

“They had seven offensive rebounds in the half but I think Tristan Thompson touched six or seven others,’’ Miller said. “We weren’t getting it clean. It’s a little unsettling when you’re getting stops and not getting the ball back.”

Morris secured a controversial four-point play when he banged in a 3-pointer and landed on Kevin Love’s foot, hurting his ankle with 7:30 left in the third. Morris crumpled to the court, and after a review, Love was assessed a flagrant foul.

Morris’ free throw made it 66-54. Afterward, a hobbling Morris said he’ll have his ankle reexamined by team doctors Tuesday.

“I can’t say as of now,’’ Morris said on his availability for the Lakers game. “It’s pretty sore. We’re going to reevaluate it tomorrow. Obviously everyone saw I twisted it. Just see how I feel and go from there.’’

Morris scored 13 of his points in the first half when the Knicks and Cavaliers exchanged the lead 10 times. After a deadlocked 26-26 first quarter, the Cavs held a 50-49 lead at halftime.

Then the Knicks rose up.

“We’re just going to continue to play hard, continue to get better,’’ Morris said. “It was good to see guys make some shots and get something to go, it kind of builds their confidence. Try to go right in the right direction.’’

Miller started the same starting five as Saturday, going with the five 2019 free agents in Morris, Randle, Elfrid Payton, Reggie Bullock and Taj Gibson. Four of the five reached double figures. It was also the team’s second straight game without RJ Barrett (ankle), and the team has played better.

Some segment of Knicks fans on social media are crying for Miller to play those guys less and the young players more. Second-year center Mitchell Robinson posted four blocks but scored just two points in 27:25 while Kevin Knox added five points but Miller praised his defense.

With the trade deadline approaching and many teams scouting and inquiring about the Knicks in recent weeks, the club clearly has a showcase mentality for the veterans rather than overplaying their young players. There’ll be plenty of time for that in February, March and April.

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