The latest hard-to-believe chapter of this bizarre story unfolded on Monday (AEDT).
How about a win from 21 points down over one of the hottest teams in the NBA over the last month? Then add this twist: The hero was buried veteran Evan Fournier, only on the floor because RJ Barrett was ill, and unsung reserve Miles McBride not only closed, but played an integral role in the win.
The Knicks, simply, don’t make sense.
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Seconds before the opening tip, the Knicks announced Barrett was doubtful with a non-COVID-19 illness. His teammates then played like they were all sick for most of the first quarter.
The Knicks missed their first seven 3-point attempts and didn’t bother to guard the 76ers on the other end. It was 33-12 deep into the period, the Garden sounding like Wells Fargo Center. There was even an E-A-G-L-E-S chant.
The Knicks responded with a resounding 20-2 run, mostly led by their bench and Quentin Grimes. He started it with a three-point play and McBride closed the quarter with a 3-pointer. Fournier scored eight points, a sign of things to come for the Frenchman.
It was a two-point game at the break, as the Knicks tightened up on the perimeter, holding the 76ers without a made 3-pointer in the second quarter on seven attempts, and Brunson and Randle scored 12 points apiece. Embiid had 18 at the break, and it felt like the Knicks did a strong job on him, he’s that tough to defend.
Two of the stars, Randle and Embiid, both had big third quarters. They combined for 15 points as the Knicks and 76ers traded mini-spurts. Philadelphia led by as many as nine, but couldn’t create any more of a cushion as the Knicks hung around and only trailed by three entering the final quarter.
Early in the fourth, the Knicks’ bench put together another strong stretch, a 10-0 run capped by a Fournier 3 to give the Knicks a four-point edge, their largest of the game. He hit another to extend the differential to seven a few possessions later, giving Knicks fans a chance to finally drown out the large portion of 76ers fans.
– Zach Braziller
This article was originally published at the New York Post and republished with permission.
5 ejections as Bamba GOES AFTER Rivers | 00:42
FUMING COACH’S MOVE AFTER SHOCK ‘NOT LEGAL’ ACT
In Minneapolis, the Minnesota Timberwolves had little trouble on the way to a 128-98 victory over the Western Conference-leading Nuggets, who were without reigning two-time Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic and three other regular starters on the second night of a back-to-back.
Denver coach Mike Malone was fuming over the “ridiculous” situation given there were just 22 hours between the team’s two games.
“The one thing that is really perplexing in this individual scenario is it’s the second night of a back-to-back we’re playing 22 hours after tip-off last night,” Malone said.
“When I told our players that, a veteran like Jeff Green looked at me like I was crazy. He said, ‘That’s not allowed. That’s not legal.’ And, obviously, it is.”
Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 20 points. D’Angelo Russell scored 18 and French centre Rudy Gobert and reserve Jaylen Nowell scored 16 apiece in the wire-to-wire win.
Josh Green BALLS OUT for Dallas! | 01:55
The Cleveland Cavaliers have put together back-to-back wins for the first time since a three-game streak that ended on January 4 thanks to a convincing 122-103 victory over the Pacers in Indianapolis.
After a back-and-forth first quarter that featured seven lead changes, the Cavs pulled away in the second quarter with a 26-9 scoring run that gave them a 16-point lead at the interval.
Darius Garland led the Cavs with 24 points on efficient eight-of-13 shooting with four three-pointers.
Donovan Mitchell shook off a slow start to finish with 19 points and the Cavs held the Pacers to just 43.5% shooting.
“Last couple of games I think we found our edge,” Garland, who hit a career milestone with his 500th three-pointer, said in an on-court television interview. “We got that competitive spirit that we really needed.”
The Raptors staged an impressive comeback, erasing a 15-point third-quarter deficit to beat the Grizzlies 106-103 in Memphis.
Pascal Siakam scored 19 points and drained a pair of clutch free throws that capped the scoring with 9.1 seconds remaining.
Memphis’ Jaren Jackson Jr. missed a potential game-tying pointer with 5.2 seconds left and the Grizzlies, whose star Ja Morant was sidelined with a sore right wrist, dropped their third straight.
In his absence, Desmond Bane led Memphis with 26 points and Jackson added 18. But they had no answer when 21-year-old Raptors forward Scottie Barnes came alive in the fourth quarter. Barnes scored 13 of his 16 points in the final frame — including a slashing go-ahead basket with 20.7 seconds to play.
NBA SCORES FOR MONDAY FEBRUARY 6
Orlando Magic 119 – Charlotte Hornets 113
Cleveland Cavaliers 122 – Indiana Pacers 103
Philadelphia 76ers 97 – New York Knicks 108
Toronto Raptors 106 – Memphis Grizzlies 103
Denver Nuggets 98 – Minnesota Timberwolves 128
Sacramento Kings 104 – New Orleans Pelicans 136
