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J.J. Barea Scores 26 Points Off the Bench, as Knicks Squander Yet Another Fourth Quarter Lead

By William Lee

Mar 30, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Wesley Matthews (23) reacts to a foul call during the first half against the New York Knicks at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 30, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Wesley Matthews (23) reacts to a foul call during the first half against the New York Knicks at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
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79. 89. 27. Final. 91

The New York Knicks took on the Dallas Mavericks Wednesday night, and everyone was eager for a rematch between Kristaps Porzingis and Dirk Nowitzki.

Unfortunately, the rematch will have to wait until next season as Porzingis was sidelined by a sore right shoulder, as per Al Iannazzone of Newsday.

"“It’s really sore,”“I can’t even lift it up.”“It’s just hard to do any kind of movement. Range of motion, lifting it up, basically everything you do. Pass and shoot, it’s painful.”"

Porzingis is expected to have an MRI when the Knicks return back home to New York.

Despite missing the sensational rookie, the Knicks were still able to get off to a hot-start, leading by double-figures within four minutes from tip-off; 12-2. New York shot lights-out in the first quarter, converting on 71.4% of their attempts from the field! Derrick Williams led the way, going 4-of-4 from the field, scoring eight of his game total 15 points in the opening period.

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However, the Mavericks still hung around after one quarter of play. Even though Dallas came out of the gate slow, missing their first-six attempts from the field, the Mavericks still shot 45.5% overall in the first quarter…

Dallas would claim the lead in the second quarter behind the stellar play of J.J. Barea, who was a huge spark off the bench for the Mavericks Wednesday night. Barea came off the bench for 12 points and 5 assists in the period, including dishing it to a open Nowitzki, who drilled a buzzer-beating three-pointer to give Dallas a 51-48 at halftime.

New York cooled off significantly in the second quarter, shooting only 31.3% from the field. Consequently the Knicks were outscored 27-18 in the period.

Starting point guard Jose Calderon got hurt in the first half and did not return after halftime. Calderon suffered a contused right quad. After the game, it was announced Calderon’s x-rays were negative.

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Jerian Grant started the second half and was a huge boost in the third quarter, stealing the ball three times in the period! With Grant spearheading the defense, New York really stepped up defensively out of halftime.

Dallas was held to only four field goals in the third quarter, converting on only 17.4% of their attempts from the field. The Knicks also forced the Mavericks into seven turnovers in the period.

New York established a double-digit lead behind Anthony’s strong play in the period, scoring ten of his game-high 31 points in the third quarter.

Unfortunately the Knicks could not sustain success, falling completely apart in the final period. In the fourth quarter, a mixture of New York’s carelessness with the basketball and Dallas’ increased defensive intensity, caused the Knicks to commit nine turnovers…

Wesley Matthews came up clutch Wednesday night, scoring seven straight points in the fourth quarter, getting the Mavericks back to within one possession. Matthews finished the game with 16 points.

Then Barea tied the game up at 86 a piece with a huge three-pointer with 2: 26 remaining in the fourth quarter. Barea KILLED the Knicks all night, and it was a fitting that he gave the Mavericks the go-ahead basket with 49.9 seconds left in the game; 90-89.

Barea finished the game with 26 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists. He also connected on four three-pointers off the bench, and had the best +/- of the night by far, with a plus-17 for the game.

New York Knicks
New York Knicks /

New York Knicks

Add March 30, 2016 to the list of Knicks’ poorly-executed fourth quarters… Interim head coach Kurt Rambis, called a timeout to set up a play, which resulted in a heavily-contested, wild driving floater by Anthony…

Luckily Williams came up with the offensive rebound. Williams threw the ball back out to reset, but of course… Anthony just hoisted a three-pointer with 18.9 seconds left in the game. Meanwhile, Rambis is just shouting for a timeout. Williams would again grab another offensive rebound, and finally the referee granted New York the timeout (which was their last of the game, something that will come into play later).

Coming out of the timeout, the Knicks predictably went to Anthony… Matthews harassed Melo, causing the ball to go off his knee with 9.8 seconds remaining in the game. It actually looked like Anthony was fouled, but the referee missed the call.

New York then was forced to foul, sending former-Knick Raymond Felton to the charity-stripe. Felton split the free-throws, giving the Knicks life with the score 91-89 with 8.7 seconds in regulation.

Without a timeout, New York could not advance the ball. Dallas wisely full-court pressed, leading to Langston Galloway missing a difficult potential game-tying three-pointer at the buzzer. Sending the Knicks to their third straight loss.

With the Mavericks winning, Dallas kept their Playoff hopes alive, tying both the seventh-seeded Houston Rockets and eighth-seeded Utah Jazz with a 37-38 record.

Next: Kurt Rambis Calls Kristaps Porzingis Dirk with Defense

New York really missed a golden opportunity to play spoiler and win the game, as Nowitzki was uncharacteristically 5-for-23 from the field Wednesday night.

The Knicks will return to Madison Square Garden on Friday night to take on the inter-city rival Brooklyn Nets, hopefully we can at least have the bragging rights in New York City. Not much of a consolation prize… but it’s at least something…

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