Tonight’s matchup at Madison Square Garden was destined to be a bruiser. Both teams played last night—the Knicks (32*-18) in a rout of Washington and Denver in a gutsy loss to Detroit. New York was riding a seven-game win streak. The Nuggets (33-18) had lost two in a row, but boast the league’s best offensive rating and arguably its best player in Nikola Jokić.
Somehow New York had played 50 games this season without going to overtime. In a game with 20 lead changes, in which neither team led by double-digits,
double overtime was required to reach a decision. And when the bell rang, New York stood tall with a 134-127 victory.
The Knicks started on an 11-2 run with three different players stroking a three. Thanks to New York’s defense, the Nuggets missed five of their first six shots and had one turnover. Then Jamal Murray (39 points, 15-of-33 FG) showed that Denver is more than just their Serbian Superman. Murray took over, dropping 20 points in his first 12 minutes, and scoring all 18 of Denver’s points on one stretch. In short order, the Nugs turned a nine-point deficit into a two-point lead.
With 30 seconds left in the first quarter, Spencer Jones collided heads with a driving Towns, opening up a gash on KAT’s eyebrow that painted his jersey in blood. Karl got a smear of vaseline before making two free throws and retreating to the locker room for six stitches. (He would return late in Q2 and finish with a 24-12 double-double.) Those two freebies swung the score back in our direction, but then Jokić (30 points, 14 boards, 10 dimes) fired a rebound to Bruce Brown, who drilled a buzzer-beater and gave Denver a 30-28 lead.
Tyler Kolek and Mitchell Robinson (10 points, 8 rebounds) joined the fray to start the second quarter. The latter scored eight points and grabbed boards with ferocity, clearly relishing the chance to battle the league’s best. The Knicks needed his inspired play to slow down Jokić, who mostly brushed off KAT tonight. With Josh Hart sidelined by the ankle he twisted yesterday, Jordan Clarkson got the start. No doubt about it, the home team would have benefited from Hart’s rebounding tonight.
Landry Shamet (16 points, 4-of-10 3PT) provided a few buckets to give the Knicks a lift, but Denver countered through Jokić, who scored inside, hit a three, and found Brown for a dunk. The Nuggets went on a 9-1 run in under two minutes to take a 45-40 lead. Jokić scored or assisted on six of those points. Then the Knicks’ starters returned, and so did the momentum. Towns delivered seven points in a hurry (a driving layup, deep three, and two free throws) while OG Anunoby (20 points, eight boards) added a dunk and attacked the boards. They spuured New York on a 9-0 run and by halftime, our heroes were up, 55-53.
Through the first half, New York outshot Denver 51% to 44% from the field, and 44% to 28% from deep. Both teams committed only six giveaways, and the Knicks held a slight edge in assists (13-11). Denver had won the boards, 25-22.
The third quarter bore a strong resemblance to the second. Towns scored inside and cleaned up misses, but New York struggled to hold the lead. Jokić‘s interior work and timely contributions from Peyton Watson and OAKAAKUYOAK Tim Hardaway Jr., briefly nudging ahead during a stretch when New York missed several threes.
Jokić is on load management after missing a bunch of games not long ago. He played last night and saw limited floor time in the third quarter. Without him, Denver relied on Jonas Valanciunas. Midway through the period, down 70-63, New York put together an Anunoby triple, a Bridges steal, a Clarkson breakaway layup, a Jalen Brunson floater, a Robinson steal, and a Robinson alley-oop for a 9-0 run to inch ahead. That expanded to a 17-4 run, thanks to sustained defensive focus and a pair of Brunson triples. Denver doesn’t have the league’s top offensive rating for nothing, though. Two treys—one from Timmy and another by Julian Strawther—cut the differential to three, but Brunson and Anunoby answered with five points. Knicks up 88-82 heading into the fourth.
The fourth quarter was another see-saw. With a minute left and the score tied at 106, Jokić missed a straight-on, uncontested three-pointer—he shot 1-0f-13 from deep tonight. Towns wrangled the rebound, which Captain Clutch turned into a layup on the other end. With 13 seconds left, Murray drilled a 14-footer to restore the tie. Brunson bricked a jumper with two seconds left, Denver called a timeout, and then Joker’s three-point attempt rattled out to send this game to overtime.
In the first bonus frame, Coach Brown was a chessmaster. He smartly switched Robinson and KAT in and out of the game. On one huge play, with a minute to go and the score knotted at 117, Robinson harassed Murray on the perimeter for a shot-clock violation. With the break in the action, KAT subbed back in and scored a layup at the other end. Down by two, Murray missed a 28-footer as the game clock expired for the w—but wait! Agony! Bridges was dinged for a loose-ball foul with 0.3 seconds remaining.
Since New York was over the limit, Christian Braun went to the line for two. He made both to deadlock the score at 119. Hence, more bonus basketball!
Towns fouled out in the first overtime. No problem. Captain Clutch was feeling it, and Brunson scored six for New York—including a cold dagger three—to take a four-point lead. Jokić kept missing from downtown, and Murray looked gassed, tripping into a turnover. When Mikal Bridges hit his first triple of the game, with 1:30 left in 2OT, New York was up 130-123. Mitch fouled Jokić on a three, but the big man could barely stand and missed two of this three tries.
Anunoby blew a dunk, and Timmy hit a three, but Brunson’s extraordinary conditioning paid dividends again, as he worked hard to get separation for a floater that restored a five-point advantage. Another puzzling Jokić miss gave the ball back to New York, and Brunson iced it with two free throws. Helluva game for him—42 points, nine assists, eight boards, two steals, 14-of-27 FG, and 5-of-12 3PT.
Quoth sprewellhasmouthstofeed, “Praise the Cap! Great win!”
Up Next
Here we go! The Knicks head to the Motor City for a rematch with the Pistons. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.
