For the second straight night, the [New York Knicks](https://www.postingandtoasting.com) (43-26) were embarrassed by a lottery team. Tonight’s opponent, the Charlotte Hornets (18-51), defeated the Knicks in every single quarter thanks to a slow, plodding offense and invisible interior defense. You’re lucky if you missed it. Final score: 115-98.
Quoth The Antisola: “This team frustrates the hell out of me.” Yep, although more of my ire is directed at the coach. With Charlotte’s LaMelo Ball swishing five triples (25 points total, eight assists), Mark Williams hammering the boards (19 points, 14 rebounds), and Miles Bridges adding a double-double (15 points, 10 rebounds), New York looked like a G-League squad—so why not give a G-League star some burn? But no—Tyler Kolek languished on the bench until the final two minutes, long after this game was far out of reach. Don’t get me wrong; I doubt Kolek would have saved the game. But he might have provided a spark, or at least a little enjoyment in an otherwise joyless affair.
As for stats: Karl-Anthony Towns scored 24 points and 10 rebounds. He’s an offensive savant; he could do nothing to stop Mark Williams and Jusuf Nurkic. OG Anunoby scored 25 points; Mikal Bridges scored 16; and Josh Hart found his way to 13. Miles McBride, playing through a groin injury if memory serves, shot 4-of-10 and scored nine. And Precious Achiuwa punched his ticket to the end of the bench.
Would they have won if Mitchell Robinson wasn’t on a minutes-restriction DNP? Maybe. He at least would have guarded the paint.
Woof.
### **First Half**
From the jump, the Knicks couldn’t buy a bucket, the other team couldn’t miss, and I had to double-check that this wasn’t a replay of yesterday’s San Antonio debacle. Nope, this was Charlotte and despite the similarities—early deficit, brain farts—our heroes managed to inch ahead by the six-minute mark.
OG Anunoby was the first to reach double digits for either team. On the other side, former Knick DaQuan Jeffries chipped in seven of Charlotte’s first 15 points.
After the Knicks went up 19-15, their defense went _poof_, they lost 50/50 balls, and Charlotte ripped off a 12-0 run to close the quarter up, 27-19.
Precious Achiuwa had a baffling half. On a fast break, he encountered Jusuf Nurkić in the lane and somehow missed Josh Hart wide open under the rim (see below). Later, he lazily telegraphed a pass into a turnover. Once Mitchell Robinson is fully healthy, rest assured that Precious will be shipped off to Siberia—or _Thibs-eria_, if you will.
With their defense leaking, the Knicks found themselves trading buckets and misses with the lowly Hornets. Bench scoring would have helped, but New York’s second unit managed to score nothing while their Charlotte counterparts contributed 17 first-half points.
In the second quarter, the Knicks’ interior defense evaporated entirely. They got manhandled on the glass and offered no resistance in the paint, falling behind by 14. Halftime score: 52-41.
Through two quarters, Charlotte shot 53% to New York’s 40%, dominated the boards 26-12, and owned the points in the paint 30-22. Sure, the Knicks tallied five steals, but their interior defense was nonexistent. The nightmare that started yesterday in San Antonio continues.
**Second Half**
In the third, New York attempted to close the gap. Anunoby knocked down a three, Towns dunked, and Bridges was active on both ends. And yet, the ‘Bockers never truly threatened the lead. Why? No stops, pops. Charlotte’s LaMelo Ball dished to Miles Bridges on a deep three and set up DaQuan Jeffries for another. Meanwhile, Nurkic did whatever he wanted around the rim, deterred drives, and even swished an uncontested threeball. Charlotte snuffed out any signs of hope, went up by as many as 18, and mounted a 13-4 run to win the quarter, 85-72.
In the final frame, New York made their baskets. So did the Hornets. The Knicks cut the lead to nine briefly, but they couldn’t get an offensive rebound to save their souls. Add another Achiuwa goof, and the hole was 16 points deep in no time.
This Mark Williams kid ain’t bad:
LaMelo swished some more triples. The fat lady had sung. Down by 19 with two minutes to go, Thibs sent in Tyler Kolek, MarJon Beauchamp, Anton Watson, Landry Shamet, and Precious. Here’s a novel idea. . . . No one watching this game thought the Knicks would come back after three pathetic quarters (make that six, if you include last night’s game). When your club is clearly doomed, why not deploy dime-master Kolek earlier in the fourth to see if he can spark something? Could his defense be that much worse than what the starters were offering?
### **Up Next**
The Knicks host the Wizards on Saturday. They should have swept a slate of Spurs, Hornets, and Wizards. Now they might be lucky to win one. Le sigh. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.
[Box Score](https://www.nba.com/game/nyk-vs-cha-0022401010/box-score)