In a Friday night showdown between two teams jockeying positions in the Eastern Conference playoff standings, the New York Knicks came into Fiserv Forum and left with a big 116-107 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
NBA.com Box Score
Game Recap
Sloppiness from the Bucks stood out to begin this one. New York capitalized on a slurry of mistakes from Milwaukee to quickly leap out to a seven-point advantage. The Bucks would eventually level themselves out, thanks to Kyle Kuzma sparking the offense with nine first quarter points. Former Buck Delon Wright got the nod in the Knicks’ starting five and had a strong impact to kick this one off, scoring ten first quarter points. Going into the second period, New York led by a 25-19 score.
The Knicks’ lead grew to a double-digit advantage lead immediately to begin the second quarter, forcing Doc Rivers to call a timeout. Despite Karl-Anthony Towns sitting for a majority of the first half due to his three fouls, New York’s offense continued to outpace Milwaukee’s. Led by Mikal Bridges’ 19 points, the Knicks carried a 60-49 lead into half.
That double-digit deficit? It immediately evaporated once the second half began. Ryan Rollins began to shift momentum Milwaukee’s way, utilizing scrappiness in getting boards as well as points. However, the foul trouble pendulum would eventually swing against Milwaukee’s favor, as late in the third, Giannis Antetokounmpo picked up his fifth foul. Going into the fourth, New York still held onto their lead at 81-73.
Giannis would make his return to the action in the fourth, flirting with danger with his five fouls. Despite him being back out on the floor, the hole had been dug too deep for the Bucks. They weren’t ever able to slice it to competitive single-digits in the fourth, as New York simply had an answer nearly every time down the floor. The dust eventually settled with the scoreboard reading a 116-107 Knicks victory.
Stat That Stood Out
Initially, it seemed like Karl-Anthony Towns would be the player that’d be defined by foul trouble in this one. Early on, he immediately picked up a quick pair and then later, his third. However, that bad luck eventually shifted Milwaukee’s way as Giannis began to pick up fouls. By the third quarter, he had five of them. It was at that point where it truly seemed as if the Bucks’ chances of making a comeback were close to expiration — and ultimately, they were.
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