Karl-Anthony Towns had 31 pts and 11 rebounds. Photo courtesy NY Knicks.
The Knicks — coming off two disappointing losses to sub-.500 teams — came out with fire and blew the last-place Washington Wizards off the court, leading by as much as 33 points in the 3rd quarter — then had to do a gut-check as Washington ran off 15 straight points to pull within 4 with 9:14 left in the game.
But NY reached back for their mojo and blew the Wizards off the court again — winning 122-103 on a Saturday night at Madison Square Garden.
Cameron Payne and Tyler Kolek were pressed in as the point-guard pair after Miles McBride joined Jalen Brunson on the injury sidelines with a groin pull — and the two sparked the Knicks, Kolek with a dominating 2nd quarter of 7 assists, 0 turnovers, and 3 steals to orchestrate NY to a 26-pt halftime lead.
Meanwhile, Mitchell Robinson was back for NY — he had missed the prior game due to schedule rehab rest — and the Knick defense was intense for most of the game. NY hit their 3’s in rhythm. KAT had 31 pts and 11 rebounds, Mikal Bridges had 27 pts on 10-20 shooting (4-8 from 3), and OG Anunoby had 23 pts on 8-12 shooting (4-5 from 3).
“They’re a good offensive team in terms of pace; they can make up ground quickly on you,” noted coach Tom Thibodeau afterwards. “I thought the defense was really good in the 1st half; the 2nd half we didn’t play as well defensively — but overall, the rebounding was good and the activity, forcing turnovers, was huge for us. We got some really good play from OG, Mikal, and KAT, and I thought Josh’s rebounding was huge. I thought Cam really did a good job for us, and Tyler gave us great minutes. So that was great to see. We just have to keep building and get ready to head down the stretch here.”
NY improves to 44-26, the 5th best record in the NBA. Washington falls to 15-55.
1. McBride Out; Payne and Kolek Play the Point
The Knicks reported before the game that Miles McBride will be out with a groin strain. NY is still without Jalen Brunson, out with the severe ankle sprain for at least another week or two — so that meant Cameron Payne started at the point, and opened up minutes for rookie Tyler Kolek.
Both played great. Payne had 13 pts (on 4-12 shooting, 3-8 from 3) and 7 assists in 30 minutes, and Kolek had a tour-de-force 2nd quarter and finished with 4 pts, 8 assists, 3 steals, and 0 turnovers in 18 minutes.
The 6’1 Kolek is a point-guard’s point guard who led Marquette into the Sweet 16 last March, and led the NCAA in assists for the season. He was drafted in the 2nd round (34th overall) in last June’s draft by Portland — then traded to the Knicks for the draft rights to Dani Díez and 2nd-round picks in 2027, 2029, and 2030.
2. Payne Orchestrates Knicks to Early 10-Pt Lead
OG Anunoby scored the first 6 points of the game for the Knicks with a 3, 1 of 2 free throws off a drive, and a bucket inside.
Then Karl-Anthony Towns went to work with 6 straight points inside. Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart, and Cam Payne joined in and NY was off to a 10-point early lead.
Bodega 💪 pic.twitter.com/kFsE4FMfpO
— Knicks Fan TV 🏀🎥📺🏁 (@KnicksFanTv) March 23, 2025
Payne hit a 3 and a deuce at the end of the quarter to give NY a 31-21 lead after 1.
3. Kolek Orchestrates in 2nd Quarter — NY Takes 26-Pt Lead
Then Tyler Kolek took over the point-guard duties to start the 2nd quarter, and he was exceptional. The lefty penetrated constantly, switched hands on the dribble, drew defenses, and fed teammates for easy buckets.
Kolek started the quarter by stealing the ball off Marcus Smart, then off Kyshawn George. Kolek then:
Fed OG for consecutive 3’s early in the quarter and NY was up 14.
Fed Mikal Bridges for consecutive 3’s and NY was up 19, at 45-26. He fed Bridges for another 3 a minute later and NY was up 21.
Tyler Kolek throws the flashy bounce pass to Mikal Bridges for the corner 3 👀 pic.twitter.com/UfDcSONTya
— Knicks Fan TV 🏀🎥📺🏁 (@KnicksFanTv) March 23, 2025
Fed Bridges for 2 consecutive jumpers and NY was up by 25.
Tyler Kolek dimes! pic.twitter.com/XEqe9hqHkd
— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) March 23, 2025
In between all that Kolek stole the ball off Alex Sarr, grabbed an offensive rebound but missed the put-back, and got fouled going to the bucket and made 1-2 free throws.
NY 66 Washington 41 at the half.
4. NY Builds Lead to 33 Points in 3rd
Payne was back at the point to start the 3rd — and it was more of the same — NY dominating as they built their lead to 33 points. Karl-Anthony Towns was having his way inside — drawing fouls for free throws or hitting drives.
Kolek entered and hit a pretty drive — going behind the back on his dribble inside.
That’s TOUGH Tyler 😳 pic.twitter.com/iCI4Z3eeG5
— Knicks Fan TV 🏀🎥📺🏁 (@KnicksFanTv) March 23, 2025
When OG hit 2 free throws with 8:14 left in the quarter, NY was up by 33 pts, at 79-46.
5. Washington Launches Comeback at End of 3rd
And then the Knicks fell asleep, and Washington made their run.
Jordan Poole started it with a deuce and then a 3 — the first signs of life for the Wizards.
OG countered with a 3, but Alex Sarr hit a deuce, AJ Johnson hit a 3, Poole hit a 3, and Johnson hit another 3 — 3 straight 3’s for the Wizards — and the lead was down to 82-62 NY.
Marcus Smart then came off the bench and got 3 buckets late in the quarter, including a 3 near the end of the period to bring the Wizards within 16 at 92-76.
6. Washington Pulls to Within 4 in 4th
The 3 by Smart at the end of the 3rd would begin a 15-0 run by the Wizards, as they scored the first 12 points of the 4th quarter to pull within 4.
7. NY Reaches for MOJO & Defense — Blows Washington Away
But NY reached back for their MOJO and found it — starting with a HUGE 3 by Cameron Payne.
The Wizards then missed 2 consecutive 3’s (by Gil and Smart) against a tighter Knick D. Bridges was fouled on a drive and made free throws to give NY a 9-pt lead.
Towns scored on a bucket inside, then stole the ball from Kyshawn George and fed Hart who fed OG for a drive and NY was up by 11.
A minute later OG stole the ball from Gil and scored on a drive for a 103-90 Knick lead.
OG 🔒 pic.twitter.com/6sSCfY0wHg
— Knicks Fan TV 🏀🎥📺🏁 (@KnicksFanTv) March 23, 2025
Josh Hart then stole the ball from AJ Johnson and scored on a floater to give NY a 17-pt lead with 5:20 left.
The Knicks cruised to the win, with KAT hitting a 3, a drive, and 2 free throws off a drive in the closing minutes.
The evening finished for NY with Kolek getting his 8th assist — a feed to Precious Achiuwa for a score inside, and then a steal and dunk by MarJon Beauchamp.
MarJon Beauchamp throws the self alley-oop! 👀 pic.twitter.com/EWR3Ar8v8H
— Knicks Fan TV 🏀🎥📺🏁 (@KnicksFanTv) March 23, 2025
The Boxscore
https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore/_/gameId/401705592