game recap

Knicks vs Wizards – 4-4-14 – Game Recap

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Written by William Lee
The Washington Wizards quickly doubled up on the New York Knicks Friday night, leading 18-9 mid-way into the first quarter. After a much needed timeout, the Knicks responded with a 10-2 run to take the lead on a Carmelo Anthony jumper, up 20-19 with 2:43 remaining in the first quarter. Basketball is a game of runs, and after a Washington timeout, they would answer with a run of their own, ending the first quarter on a 7-2, to take a 27-21 lead.
            New York’s started off the second quarter on a 15-4 run, playing suffocating defense, holding Washington scoreless for four minutes during the stretch. This gave New York a 36-31 lead with 5:31 left in the second quarter. The Knicks would continue to apply defensive pressure in the quarter, forcing the Wizards to 28.6% shooting in the period. New York outscored Washington 22-12 in the second quarter, leading by 43-39 at the half. J.R. Smith was huge for the Knicks, scoring 19 points in the first half, connecting on five money ball.
            The Knicks and the Wizards would go back and forth in the third quarter, exchanging baskets. Amare Stoudemire at one points scored 12 straight points for New York, including a vicious slam dunk on Marcin Gortat to give the Knicks a 60-55 lead. Washington would regain the lead with John Wall aggressively attacking the paint on consecutive possessions, drawing free throws on the first possession, then getting into the lane for a dunk to help regain the lead for the Wizards 62-60. New York would answer, regaining the lead on J.R. Smith’s seventh three of the game. Then J.R. Smith would hit a fade away jumper to that was basically a buzzer beater for the third quarter, giving the Knicks a 67-64 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

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Knicks vs. Nets – 4-2-14 – Game Recap

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new-york-knicks-v-brooklyn-netsWritten by William Lee

Early on in the first quarter it was a battle of tag teams between the duos of J.R. Smith and Amare Stoudemire, and the combination of Deron Williams and Joe Johnson. Smith and Stoudemire combined to score the first 16 points for New York, with each scoring eight points to help keep pace with the Brooklyn Nets, tying the game up at 16-16, eight minutes into the game. Deron Williams answered with a driving layup, giving him nine points in the opening quarter, who was one-half of the Net’s tag team attack, with Joe Johnson scoring seven points to compliment his backcourt-mate.

You don’t have to be an expert oddsmaker to understand the Knicks chances of winning these days.  For example, one look at these official lines for NBA betting tell that story.  But we could all tell that the Knicks, Shumpert in particular, wanted this one.  With both teams exchanging punches, Knicks tagged in Iman Shumpert. Shumpert came off the bench, giving the Knicks a huge spark with his defensive intensity. Shumpert stole the ball twice within the last 17.9 seconds of the first quarter, leading to a Carmelo Anthony dunk, and then a Tim Hardaway Jr. buzzer beating three, giving the Knicks a 29-20 lead at the end of the first quarter. This run bridged into the second quarter, where it was extended to a 20-2 run, giving New York a 39-22 lead with 8:29 left in the first half.

Shumpert continued to put his imprints on the game, when he grabbed an offensive rebound, taking the ball back out to size up Mirza Teletovic, where he then put the moves on Teletovic, going behind the back on him for a reverse layup! This gave New York a 45-30 lead with 6:16 remaining in the quarter. A minute later Shumpert would disrupt Marcus Thornton’s pass to the post, collecting his fourth steal in the first half, and then running out for an and-one opportunity. Continue reading →

Knicks @ Suns – 3-29-14 – Game Recap

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Written by William Lee

Friday night’s matchup featured two teams fighting desperately for their playoff lives with the Phoenix Suns clinging on for dear life onto their eighth spot, holding only a half a game advantage on the Dallas Mavericks. As for the Knicks, as poorly as they have played, the Atlanta Hawks have played that much worse, and are in a complete downward spiral losing five straight games, as New York climbed a game and a half back of the eighth seed.

Goran Dragic exploded out the opening gate, going 7-for-8 from the field, with three of them coming from beyond the arc, finishing the first quarter with 18 points. Phoenix as a team had six threes in the opening quarter, which should come as no surprise since the Suns are third in three-point field goals made with 9.4 made per game, and top five in the league in three-point field goal percentage with 37.6%. J.R. Smith kept New York in the game early in the first quarter, scoring back to back threes, after tying a franchise record the previous game with nine three-pointers made against the Sacramento Kings. Smith scored ten points in the first quarter, but cooled off significantly the rest of the game, going 2-for-7 the rest of the way. Continue reading →

Knicks Vs. Pacers – 3-20-14 – Game Recap

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Written by William Lee

Welcome to New York Phil Jackson. One day after the Knicks formally introduced the new team President in a Tuesday afternoon Press Conference, and on a day Knicks’ fans decided to hold a protest rally, New York welcomed Mr. Phil Jackson with a 92-86 victory over the Indiana Pacers. The Knicks extended their season high winning streak to seven games, and avoided a season sweep by Indiana.

The New York Knicks lead 21-14 after the first quarter, in a very sloppy and ugly opening quarter. Both teams made only six field goals, converting on less than a third of their attempts. Indiana turned the ball over six times in the quarter, yet New York was so inept themselves, that they were not able to capitalize on any of those opportunities. The game was so ugly that for the last three and a half minutes of the first quarter, neither teams made a field goal to end the period. The one saving grace for the Knicks was that they were able to get to the line, and convert free throws, making 9/10 from charity stripe.

The field goal draught would continue for both teams, before Lance Stephenson finally made a field goal for the Pacers a little over a minute into the second quarter. Amare Stoudemire finally ended the Knicks’ field goal draught by hitting a mid-range jumper two minutes into the second quarter. This sparked an offensive bonanza out of nowhere for the Knicks, compared to how snail paced the game was going beforehand, going on a 16-2 run, giving the Knicks a 39-23 lead with 6:11 remaining in the second quarter. Stoudemire scored 10 of his 21 points in the second quarter, during the crucial run that gave New York a sixteen point lead in the first half. Continue reading →

Knicks @ Cavs – 3-8-14 – Game Recap

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Written by William Lee

New York spoiled Cleveland big night for Big Z, Zydrunas Ilgauskas’ retirement ceremony, winning 107-97 Saturday night.

New York devastated Cleveland inside early and often, scoring easily in the paint, finishing with 12 points in the paint in the first quarter. Amare Stoudemire continued his strong performance since inserted into the lineup, scoring 8 of his 17 points in the first quarter. Stoudemire got his second double-double all season with 17 points and 12 rebounds.

While Carmelo Anthony who normally starts off strong, was not his typical self, seen visibly suffering from a cold, keeping as much article of clothing on himself as possible, and draping his head in a towel during pre-game warm ups. Anthony would start off cold, missing his first six attempts from the field. With New York’s star player struggling, their defense kept them in the game, holding Cleveland scoreless for nearly the final three and a half minutes of the first quarter. The Knicks went on an 8-2 run during this stretch, before allowing Jarret Jack to score in the winding seconds in the period. New York led 23-19 after one period of play. Continue reading →

Knicks vs. Timberwolves – 3-6-14 – Game Recap

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Written by William Lee

New York finally ended their losing streak, and their hero ironically was Raymond Felton, whom has recently been vilified by New York papers and tabloid for his illegal possession of firearms.  And rightfully so, especially if the allegations of him pointing the gun at his wife are true, but for now, that’s all it is, just allegations, and Felton will have his date in court soon enough. For one night though Felton was the hero.

            Raymond Felton had his best game, possibly all year, but definitely his best game since his arrest. Felton was great at getting into the paint and scoring, as well as facilitating the offense Wednesday night. Felton had the best +/- of any player with a +21 scoring18 points and handing out 8 assists, along with four steals. Felton made crucial plays in the fourth quarter, holding off any potential Minnesota comeback.

            Felton scored seven points and dished out three assist in the fourth quarter. The Timberwolves made a 7-0 to cut the Knicks’ lead into single figure 107-99 with 2:43 remaining in the game. After a quick timeout, Felton would hit a clutch floater to push the Knicks’ lead back up to double digits. Then Felton would put a cap on his fantastic night by hitting a three that essentially sealed the game with 1:08 remaining, making the score 114-101. New York would go on to defeat Minnesota 118-106. Continue reading →

Knicks @ Pistons – 3-3-14 – Game Recap

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Written by William Lee

Make it seven! Seven game losing streak…for the New York Knickerbockers.

With New York looking straight up at Detroit in the Eastern Conference standings, and every game a must win, since maybe two weeks ago. The Knicks again showed their lack of desire and passion for the game of basketball. They showed that they have lost faith in their coach and each other. With as much as a 14 point lead in the first half, it was all but squandered away by halftime. New York held a five point lead after the first half 44-39 mainly due to the great play of the Knicks frontcourt.

Amare Stoudemire was inserted into the starting lineup, and immediately made his presence felt scoring eight points in the first quarter, and finishing with 22 points, in one of his more effective nights going 9/11 from the field. Tyson Chandler also had himself a great first half, almost collecting himself a double-double by intermission with 8 points and 9 rebounds. Chandler continued his rebounding rampage, averaging 14.2 rebounds in the last ten games, collecting 18 rebounds by game’s end.

Carmelo Anthony had his typical good starts to games, connecting on back to back threes to start the game Monday night. Anthony scored 16 points in the first half, with the last couple of baskets coming at the end of the first half in a very fortunate matter. Anthony was complaining about a no call on the layup attempt that ended up getting officially registered as Andre Drummond’s third block, even though Continue reading →

Knicks @ Bulls – 3-2-14 – Game Recap

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Written by William Lee

New York continued their losing ways in matinee games.

            New York got throttled by Chicago in a Sunday matinee game. These teams are complete polar opposites. While Chicago’s management tried to tank the season for a projected outstanding 2014 draft class, by trading their leading scorer Luol Deng, the Bulls didn’t sulk. The Bulls refused to give in, and continued to give maximum effort every night, and the results speak for themselves. Chicago is an impressive 20-8 after trading Deng early in January.

           New York on the other hand looks to have talent on paper, but the sums do not add up to the whole. New York does not play with effort, does not play with any passion or urgency. It was another case of that Sunday afternoon, as the Knicks allowed the Bulls to jump out to a 12-1 lead within two and half minutes of tip off. Joakim Noah was destroying New York on hand off screens, creating the breathing room needed for shooters to get a clean shot. Noah created three of these opportunities for his Bulls teammates during the quick outburst to start the game.

            After a quick timeout to try to stop the Bulls’ momentum, the Knicks missed, and Noah grabbed the rebound and went coast to coast for a layup. Not exactly what Mike Woodson drew up (if he draws up any plays in the huddle). Chicago hit the 20 points mark before it was even mid-way through the first quarter, and this is a team that is the worst offensive team in the league at 93.1 points per game. When it was all said and done, the Knicks would allow Chicago to score 37 points in the first quarter.  37 points is the most points scored by the Bulls in any individual quarter all season. Continue reading →

Knicks vs. Warriors – 2-28-14 – Game Recap

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Written by William Lee

Both the Golden State Warriors and the New York Knicks entered Friday night’s game with a bad taste in their mouth, suffering huge defeats in their previous game. Golden State lost to Chicago 103-83 Wednesday night, while New York got humiliated by the defending Champions Miami Heat 108-82 the night before.

New York would continue their humiliating play on Friday. The Warriors jumped on the Knicks early in the game, going on a 10-0 run early in the first quarter. The run gave Golden State a 15-6 lead with 7:30 remaining in the first quarter, the Warriors would continue their onslaught in the period, finishing the quarter with 38 points. By the end of the first quarter it was 38-27, with the Warriors shooting 56% from the field, converting on five three-pointers.

New York went on a 9-2 run early in the second quarter, to cut the deficit into single digits 48-39. In a blink of an eye, any hope the Knicks had of coming back disappeared with the Warriors going on a 25-13 run to end the second quarter. By the end of the first half the Warriors were ahead 73-52, the 73 points were the most points New York had given up in the first half. The Madison Square Garden crowd booed their home team off the court. Many more cascade of boos would continue to serenade the Knicks throughout the night, and deserving so. Continue reading →

Knicks @ Hawks – 2-22-14 – Game Recap

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Written by William Lee

The New York Knicks came into Saturday night with a chance to gain a full game on the eight seed Atlanta Hawks. The task would be even more difficult than a typical back to back game, because the Knicks played extended minutes against the Orlando Magic the night before, with the game going into double overtime. Five players played over 40 minutes Friday night, with Carmelo Anthony going over the 50 minute mark.

Even though Anthony played extended minutes he was still able to have an effective shooting night, scoring 35 points, including four threes. Yet again though it would be another wasted well-played game from Carmelo Anthony as the Knicks fall to the Hawks 107-98. It was also a wasted night for Tyson Chandler who was a man possessed on the glass, collecting 23 rebounds. As great as this performance was, it should be noted that Atlanta is the fourth worst rebounding team in the league with 40.7 per game.

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