For the third time in the young season the New York Knicks battled the Milwaukee Bucks. Each time, the away team came out with the victory. New York hoped to continue that trend just as they ruined opening night in Milwaukee.
Carmelo Anthony gave New York a scare, when he limped off the court two minutes into the game. The Knicks went scoreless in his absence, getting dominated in the paint by Greg Monroe; who scored six straight points to give the Bucks an early 10-6 lead. Monroe reached double figures in the opening quarter alone with ten points, and finished the game with his tenth double-double of the season with 18 points and 14 rebounds.
Anthony looked to be okay as he checked back into the game a couple of minutes later and got the Knicks back on track. Anthony finished the first quarter on a strong note, scoring seven straight points to keep New York in the game; down 29-24 after one quarter of play. Anthony though would finish the game poorly, scoring 18 points on 6/17 shooting.
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New York got within one possession a couple of times, but never got over the hump. The Knicks were their own enemies, coughing up the ball as they got close. Jabari Parker made the Knicks pay for their mistakes, rocking the rim for a highlight one-handed jam! Parker scored eight of his total 17 points in the second quarter, which gave the Bucks a 52-48 lead at halftime.
New York’s turnover problems continued in the second half..turning the ball over four times to start the period…which helped ignited a Milwaukee 21-4 run. The run gave the Bucks their largest lead of the game (21 points), leading 73-52 with 7:04 remaining in the third quarter.
Milwaukee’s suffocating defense (which actually is not a strength for them this year… being top ten worst in opponent points, field goal percentage and three-point percentage per NBA.com), smothered New York in the third quarter. The Knicks only made six field goals in the period… to go along with five turnovers…
Coach Derek Fisher substituted out all the starters for their poor second half start and the bench actually got New York back into the game. Lance Thomas and Derrick Williams combined for 12 points in the quarter, cutting the deficit down to ten points with 1:21 remaining in the third quarter.
New York got within single digits midway into the fourth quarter when Anthony scored five straight points, but a quick 7-2 Milwaukee mini run essentially put the game away for good. After a O.J. Mayo three-pointer, the Knicks trailed 96-81 with 5:11 remaining in the game. Mayo had his best game of the year so far, finishing with 17 points on 8/12 shooting from the field.
The Bucks went on to win the game 106-91, with Michael Carter-Williams leading the way with 20 points and 5 assists. It was Milwaukee’s defense though that starred Saturday night with the Knicks looking sluggish all-night on the second game of a back-to-back. The Bucks forced New York to turn the ball over 15 times, and into a dismal 42.1% shooting from the field. Milwaukee also held a huge edge on the offensive boards as well, collecting 13 offensive rebounds to score 16 second chance points.
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Kristaps Porzingis had one of his worst games of the season so far. Porzingis finished the game with 12 points and 7 rebounds, but also had 5 turnovers… and 5 personal fouls. Porzingis looked like a deer in the headlights (pun intended) when the Bucks were making their third quarter run, in-bounding the ball to a Buck on one play and traveling on another. Porzingis heavily contributed to the Knicks’ turnover problems in the crucial third quarter and throughout the game.
Although Porzingis still got in his highlights Saturday night with a one-handed dunk.
And a tip-in from out of nowhere!
Next: Phil Jackson Talks Kristaps Porzingis' Magical Element
Porzingis will look to redeem himself Monday night against the player he is most compareed to; Dirk Nowitzki.