Thunder (59-16) came into tonight with the league’s best record and ranked first in the league for both points-per-game and defensive rating. The visiting Knicks (48*-27) were ready, though. On Walt ‘Clyde’ Frazier’s 81st birthday, they played well enough through three quarters to make the G.K.O.A.T. proud. Then the Thunder turned on the gas and scorched them in the fourth. In the end, our heroes missed 46 shots, turned the ball over 18 times, and had 17 trips to the charity stripe compared to the Thunder’s
38. Hard to win a ballgame with those numbers. Final score, 111-100.
With the refs mostly swallowing their whistles, this game began like a track meet. By 7:20, both teams had nine points, five rebounds, and shot 1-of-2 from downtown, and both were panting. From there, the Knicks played from behind, but despite shooting 7-of-25 in the quarter, they never trailed by more than five. Credit their sticky defense, with a steal apiece for Mikal Bridges (15 PTS, 4 STL) and Josh Hart (15 PTS, 6 RBS), and blocks for Mitchell Robinson (3 PTS, 4 RBS) and Miles McBride (0 PTS, 11 MIN). By the end of the quarter, our heroes trailed 26-23.
The good vibes disappeared at the start of Q2, with Isaiah Hartenstein (13 RBS, 6 PTS) and Jalen Williams (22 PTS) strolling into back-to-back dunks. Meanwhile, New York made one of their first six shots of the period. We don’t know what the game plan was exactly, but Karl-Anthony Towns (15 PTS, 18 RBS) had gone eight minutes without a shot in the first quarter and didn’t make his first attempt until four minutes into the second. The visitors fell behind by nine but fought back, and when Jalen Brunson (32 PTS, 13-22 FG) and Jose Alvarado (8 PTS, 3-10 FG) hit consecutive buckets, the score was 40-39, and coach Mark Daigneault needed a timeout. Less than a minute later, Brunson swished from 27 feet to tie it at 42.
From there, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (30 PTS, 8-18 FG, 13-16 FT), Lu Dort (12 PTS), Williams, and Chet Holmgren (16 PTS, 9 RBS) all scored on a 9-3 run. Brunson responded with a 4-0 solo run, but his cohort surrendered another cutting dunk. Cason Wallace blocked an OG Anunoby drive, but Brunson drew a charge, then dished a buzzer-beating dime to Josh Hart, who drilled a longball. Halftime score: OKC, 53-51
Through the first half, the Knicks hung around despite losing the game in the most reliable areas. The Okies dominated inside (26–10 in the paint), shooting far more efficiently overall (49% to 37%) and lived at the line (18 attempts to 8). The Knicks’ lifeline was their strong shooting from beyond the arc (11-of-24) and the Thunder’s misfires (3-of-12). In the baffling but true column, Towns had attempted one shot in 16 first-half minutes. Brunson led all scorers with 16, and J-Dub topped the hosts with 13.
For once, the Knicks came out of halftime and scored first—a bucket from Cap that gave them their first lead of the night. They tried to get Towns into the mix, too, but he committed one of those boneheaded offensive fouls, which was upgraded to a flagrant-one. But, the umps were playing fair: for once, they called an offensive foul on SGA for shoving an arm into Hart’s chest to create separation. Maybe they whistle the nationally televised games more honestly?
Both sides guarded the ball well and forced the other team into misses. Unfortunately, the home team continued to outrebound the visitors, especially iHart who had 10 boards by the middle of the frame. The Knicks fell behind by eight before Hart laced a triple that sent OKC into a timeout.
At 5:30, McBride and Dort dove for a loose ball, collided, and Deuce went to the locker room, holding his groin. He had just missed 28 games to recover from a hernia surgery. Jordan Clarkson (2 PTS, 21 MIN) replaced him in the game, but shot poorly, making one, missing five.
Late in the third, Hart defended SGA on a three-point miss. Because last season’s MVP reached his forearm to connect with the passing Hart, and the refs rewarded the cheater with three freebies. Forget my earlier erroneous assumptions. That made it a nine-point game with 35 seconds to go, but Mitch hit a free throw, and Brunson hit a 16-footer to make it 84-78. And after 24 minutes, KAT had attempted two shots.
To start the final frame, Alex Caruso hit a three, Hartenstein scored a tip-in, and the Thunder took an 11-point advantage, their largest yet. Our heroes were determined not to whither and die just yet. On a 13-3 run, Towns took four shots, finally getting into the offense. Anunoby canned another trey, and KAT fought for an and-one that cut the deficit to one. The Knicks’ All-Star scored nine in the quarter after starting it with six.
SGA baited another foul at the five-minute mark, giving Bridges his fifth. From there, OKC went on a 15-7 run that featured a whole lot of Gilgeous-Alexander, who finished the affair with 16 free throws, making 13. With refs treating him this favorably, another Thunder championship seems almost all but guaranteed.
Up Next
You lucky bums have a Miranda recap in the chamber. As for the Knicks, they’ll be in Houston on Tuesday for the first of a back-to-back. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.
* Should be one more, but NBA Cups float away when their strings are cut.
