Sunday night Madison Square Garden was buzzing with the NBA Champions Golden State Warriors making their lone visit of the year.
Although, the game started off slowly for both teams. Both teams would combine to miss the first-nine attempts of the game.
This problem was compounded for New York when Kristaps Porzingis picked up two early fouls 90 seconds from tip-off. The game looked like it would get out of hand quickly, as Golden State immediately went on a 7-0 run with the rookie going to the bench.
New York responded with a 14-0 run, led by Carmelo Anthony – who bullied his way to the free-throw line. Anthony scored 11 of his 24 total points in the opening period. New York led 20-18 after one-quarter of play.
.@carmeloanthony w/ 11pts, 4rebs, 2asts. #Knicks own a 20-18 lead at the end of 1Q. #NYKvsGSW pic.twitter.com/zY8R3PdqQk
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) February 1, 2016
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The 18 points total for Golden State marked the lowest scoring first quarter for the Warriors. The league’s leading offense (115 points per game) looked completely out of sorts, committing eight turnovers in the opening quarter and shot only 41.2% from the field.
The reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Stephen Curry especially struggled in the first quarter, needing nine field goal attempts to score eight points. Curry also turned the ball over twice in the opening quarter.
The second quarter started off very nicely for the Knicks as Derrick Williams had a thunderous one-handed dunk to start the period, but those good feelings would quickly dissipate.
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Golden State would converted on nine consecutive field goals and would take a 40-33 lead midway through the second quarter when all was said and done. The hot shooting for Golden State did not stop… as the Warriors would go on to have their best shooting performance in a single quarter this season against the Knicks Sunday night, converting on 82.4% of their field goals in the second quarter.
Warriors shot 14-of-17 (82.4%) in the 2nd quarter vs the Knicks, their best-shooting quarter this season pic.twitter.com/x7fLBk85vn
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) February 1, 2016
Klay Thompson was the catalyst igniting the Warriors’ offense, erupting for 17 points in the second quarter! Thompson scored a game high 34 points Sunday night.
Quick release, #SPLASH. @klaythompson on @csnauthentic pic.twitter.com/yRZWJMm42p
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) February 1, 2016
With Golden State gaining complete control of the game, New York semi-stopped their momentum by knocking down a three-pointer to beat the buzzer going into halftime. With William’s buzzer beater the Knicks only faced a 55-49 deficit at intermission. Williams finished the game with 11 points.
Although it would be more of the same in the third quarter for the Warriors as Thompson continued to torch the Knicks, adding another dozen points to his total in the period.
Golden State also completely shut downed the Knicks in the third quarter, forcing New York to shoot 21.1% from the field. The Knicks converted on only four field goal attempts… to score 16 points in the third quarter. The Warriors are the second-best defensive team in the league, forcing opponents to shot 43% from the field per NBA.com.
New York Knicks
Golden State would lead by as many as 25 points in the fourth quarter but a 9-0 Knicks’ run cut the deficit down to 89-76 with 7:55 remaining in the game. The Warriors responded by raining three-pointers… and the game was pretty much over. Golden State went on to win the game 116-95.
Draymond Green finished the game with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists for his league leading ninth triple-double of the season. Green was critical to Sunday’s victory, as he kept the Warriors afloat in the first half before Golden State finally got into a groove. Green was making all the plays in the first half, collecting 8 of his assists in that time.
It was fun in the first quarter when the Knicks forced the Warriors into their worst first quarter performance of the season but eventually the NBA Champions figured it out. Warriors just doing Warriors’ things, nothing New York could have done about it… Just ask the rest of the league…
Curry had an off-night; scoring 13 points on 17 field goal attempts yet the Knicks could not captalize as his “Splash Brother” sidekick went off instead. The Warriors just have so much options and is just a complete juggernaut on offense, nothing you can do about it.
Next: What Can Thanasis Antetokounmpo Bring to the Knicks?
New York will host the Boston Celtics at MSG Tuesday night, as they will look to go back on the winning column after a loss the the NBA Champions.