The Knicks finished the game strong, scoring 36 points in the fourth quarter in their come-from-behind 102-98 win over the Orlando Magic.
Here are the takeaways...
- It wasn't the prettiest of starts by the Knicks who had just 10 points with 5:31 left in the first quarter thanks to a Jalen Brunson three-pointer that brought New York to within eight points.
- Some good defense by the Knicks and missed shots by the Magic down the stretch brought New York closer at the end of the quarter as the Knicks were down just 26-22.
- The offense continued to stall, for both teams, in the second quarter.
- The Magic could only muster 22 points, just four points more than what the Knicks put up. However, New York did go on a 10-1 run during a three-minute stretch late in the half, shrinking an 11-point deficit to one. Orlando finished the half on a 7-0 run of their own.
- At halftime, New York was down 48-40 due to a rough shooting half. The Knicks shot 16-of-40 from the field and 5-of-19 from three. They also missed half of their free-throw attempts, going 3-for-6 from the charity stripe.
- Orlando wasn't much better, going 18-for-40 from the field, 4-for-13 from three and 8-of-12 at the free throw line. The biggest difference between both teams was the turnovers as New York coughed the ball up eight times compared to Orlando's two.
- Shots began to fall for the Knicks in the third quarter as they outscored the Magic 26-21. Still, they weren't able to take the lead, getting it to within a one-possession game on multiple occasions, including to end the quarter as New York was down 69-66.
- It wasn't until the fourth quarter that New York's offense really came alive.
- RJ Barrett started things off with a game-tying three-pointer, the first tie in the game since it was 2-2 in the first quarter. After Orlando regained the lead, Immanuel Quickley's step back triple gave the Knicks their first lead since the first basket of the game.
- The lead was short-lived though as Mo Wagner began to heat up from behind the arc, draining two straight threes from the top of the key to give the Magic an 80-75 lead.
- Still, New York clawed its way back. Jericho Sims showed off his hops with two consecutive dunks, one that tied the game and the other that gave the Knicks the lead once again.
- Markelle Fultz had himself a big fourth quarter as well, seemingly answering every Knicks' made basket with a make of his own. He even gave his team a late 93-92 lead with 1:28 left to play.
- But from that point on, New York went on a 10-5 run as Brunson drained free throw after free throw to seal the game. Julius Randle iced the game with 2.1 seconds left with two free throws of his own that gave the Knicks a 102-98 lead which is how they won.
Highlights
What's next
The Knicks return to action on Friday, Feb. 10 when they travel to Philadelphia to take on the 76ers at 7:00 p.m.
