NEW YORK (AP) — Chet Holmgren had 28 points and eight rebounds, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 26 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder edged the New York Knicks 103-100 on Wednesday night.
Holmgren tied a career high with six 3-pointers and Lu Dort added 16 points for the Thunder, who recovered after the Knicks took the lead with a 40-point third quarter, going back ahead early in the fourth and nursing a small advantage the rest of the way.
Jalen Brunson
and OG Anunoby missed tying 3-point attempts on the final possession as Oklahoma City won its fourth straight and snapped New York's three-game winning streak.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 17 points and 17 rebounds for the Knicks. Brunson had 16 points and a season-high 15 assists, but shot just 5 for 18. Anunoby also had 16 points.
The first meeting of the season between the NBA champions and a Knicks team that fell two wins short of facing them in the NBA Finals had a high level of intensity. The Knicks thought referees missed what should have been Gilgeous-Alexander’s third foul in the first quarter after he crashed into Brunson, with an irate Mike Brown getting his first technical as Knicks coach.
Oklahoma City led 63-48 with 8:45 left in the third before the Knicks tied it with a 24-9 surge that Brunson capped when his 3-pointer got a friendly bounce in. Mikal Bridges' 3-pointer with 1.2 seconds to go gave New York an 80-77 lead.
Holmgren had 14 points in the first quarter, making four 3-pointers and going 5 for 7 overall — with the 7-foot-1 forward's two misses on jump shots that were blocked.
Oklahoma City led 44-31 but didn't score again for the next five minutes to let New York back into it. Holmgren ended the drought with two 3s in the final 46 seconds and it was 50-40 at halftime.
Thunder: Host Golden State on Saturday.
Knicks: Visit Denver on Friday to open a five-game trip.
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