Karl-Anthony Towns’ struggles, Miles McBride’s injury headline Knicks’ 111-100 loss at Thunder
With Sunday’s 111-100 loss at the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Knicks dropped consecutive games for the first time since March 8-9.
Takeaways
-
New York (48-27) mostly rotated nine players while OKC (59-16) went 12 deep. The Thunder’s depth was apparent and translated defensively, where Alex Caruso, among others, stifled top Knicks such as Karl-Anthony Towns early and often. Especially down the stretch when New York knocked on the door — the Knicks trailed 97-95 with more than four minutes left in the fourth quarter — OKC’s depth and defense proved vital.
-
Towns offensively came alive in the fourth quarter, but defensive lapses, a four-point first half on 1-for-1 shooting was an absence that New York needed while only trailing the NBA’s best team by one point — 53-52 — at halftime. After 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting in 22 minutes of this past Friday’s 114-103 loss at the Charlotte Hornets, a double-double on 15 points and 18 rebounds does not overshadow what was a disappointing big-game performance for Towns, whom the Knicks need to overcome these spots.
-
Miles McBride‘s injury looms large. In his first game back since mid-February surgery for a sports hernia, he left for the locker room after a loose-ball collision with Luguentz Dort midway through the third quarter and did not return. McBride was scoreless on 0-for-3 shooting with one rebound, one assist and one block in 11 minutes off the bench.
-
Jalen Brunson‘s 32 points on 13-of-22 shooting in 32 minutes should not go overlooked. He scored 16 of his game-high total in the first half, carrying New York alongside fellow former Villanova stars Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart while Towns struggled into the break.
Who’s the MVP?
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, whose team-high 30 points included seven straight from the fourth quarter’s 4:33 mark through 3:37 point while the Thunder mounted a 14-5 run to end the game.
Advertisement
Highlights
What’s next
The Knicks’ schedule remains tough out west with Tuesday’s 8 p.m. game at the Houston Rockets (45-29).
