The Knicks were without Karl-Anthony Towns, who was given the night off to rest a sore knee, and didn’t make enough shots down the stretch as Golden State turned a 94-93 game with 6:33 left into a 114-102 victory.
OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, and Josh Hart kept missing jumpers while Gui Santos, Stephen Curry, Moses Moody, Jimmy Butler, and Kevin Looney scored 11 straight points to give the Warriors a 105-93 lead with 2:39 left and that was ballgame.
Jalen Brunson scored a flurry of points in the last 2 minutes but Steph Curry hit a killer 3 with 1:29 left to ice it.
On a Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden.
Anunoby and Bridges were having great games before the 2 minutes schneid in the 4th — OG finishing with 29 pts on 11-19 shooting (4-9 from 3) and Bridges with 15 pts on 7-15 shooting (albeit 1-5 from 3). Brunson had 25 pts on 9-18 shooting (but was 1-7 from 3).
NY falls to 40-21; Golden State 34-28.
1. No KAT; No Problem — OG & Precious Step Up
With no KAT, the Knicks were going to need OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges to step up and provide additional offense to help Jalen Brunson out — and they did.
Anunoby especially had a big night with the 29 pts on 11-19 shooting.
KAT’s absence meant Mitchell Robinson started at center. He played 15 minutes due to the limit he is under after just returning from a year’s absence due to the ankle surgery. Precious Achiuwa stepped back into the backup center role and had a great game — with 8 pts (on 4-10 shooting), 15 rebounds, and a block in 30 minutes.
2. NY by 8 at the Half
A Miles McBride drive, Cameron Payne 3, and OG Anunoby 3 gave the Knicks 8 straight points and a 7-pt lead, 34-27, early in the 2nd — a lead they maintained until the half. Precious Achiuwa, Brunson, and OG did a majority of the Knicks scoring in the period.
3. NY Shot Poorly from 3
Josh Hart had a miserable offensive game — 1-8 shooting (0-4 from 3) for 2 pts and was a -22 on the night — with 7 rebounds and 8 assists.
The Knicks as a team were horrible from 3 — 8-33 for 24 %. Golden State was 13-37 for 35% and that was the game right there.
4. GS Takes 82-81 After 3
A Bridges jumper gave NY a 10-pt lead early in the 3rd, but Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler, and shooting guard Brandin Podziemski erased the lead with a run.
Back to back 3’s by Curry and Podziemski gave Golden State a 64-62 lead with 7 minutes left in the quarter.
OG Anunoby carried the Knicks in the quarter, but the Warriors were able to maintain the lead — entering the 4th up 82-81.
4. Golden State 11-Pt Run with 6 Minutes Left Wins It
Buddy Hield came off the Warrior bench to be a pain in the ass to the Knicks at the start of the 4th — hitting a 3 to start the period, then a drive and then a step-back jumper to put GS up 92-89.
The Knicks were getting scoring from Landry Shamet, Cameron Payne, and OG at the start of the period.
An OG 3, and then an OG free throw off a drive pulled NY to within 94-93 with 6:33 left. But OG missed the second free throw, and then GS went on their 11-0 run for the old ballgame.
Steph Curry finished with 28 pts on 10-21, 5-9 from 3, and a +22. Jimmy Butler and Podziemski each had 19 pts.
The Boxscore
https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore/_/gameId/401705451