Knicks Can’t Protect Once 19-Point Lead In NOLA
David Fizdale has not minced words with his thoughts on his New York Knicks play, and challenged his players to answer his team-wide critique with a strong showing in New Orleans.
The New York Knicks showed up on Friday night in the Big Easy, but fell to the New Orleans Pelicans 129-124 at the Smoothie King Center to drop their fourth straight game.
Anthony Davis scored a season-high 43 points and added 17 rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block in the Pelicans come from behind win.
The New York Knicks (4-12) had little answers for the superstar big man and in the second half Jrue Holiday, who finished with 24 points, 10 assists and four rebounds.
The New York Knicks took a commanding 32-16 lead after one as Tim Hardaway Jr. and company came out firing while the Pelicans started cold.
That lead would grow to 19 in the second quarter, but New Orleans would slice into New York’s lead as it was a 64-54 lead at the half for David Fizdale’s Knicks.
New Orleans kept trying to chip away at the lead, but New York’s control over the game would persist into the fourth quarter.
New York held a 114-103 lead with 6:53 remaining in the game, but would come under siege after an avalanche by the New Orleans Pelicans.
A combination of Anthony Davis and Julius Randle would prove to be too much down the stretch as the Pelicans used a 17-point burst over the next four minutes to snatch the lead from the Knicks and wouldn’t look back as they handed New York a stinging defeat.
The Knicks continued to have their problems guarding the paint, as they allowed 68 points in the paint. Their inability to defend that area culminated in 32 free throws for New Orleans, which was eight more than New York’s 24 attempts.
Tim Hardaway Jr. finished with 30 points for the Knicks, but he cooled off tremendously in the second half as New York saw its lead evaporate.
It was one of those teaching losses for a young Knicks team that for the first time since their last victory, looked like a team that had life on the floor offensively and in the first half defensively as well.
New York got a strong effort out of Emmanuel Mudiay, who made his second start of the season, as he scored a season-high 19 points to go along with six rebounds in 23 minutes of action.
Trey Burke was electric off the bench, looking the best he’s looked in that role since being taken out of the starting lineup as he scored 24 points in 26 minutes of action.
Missing though, as mentioned, was a defensive presence in the paint, a issue that some seven-foot-one fella currently recovering from an ACL injury could’ve helped on a night where Anthony Davis isn’t the only headache on the floor.
The New York Knicks will look to salvage their three-game road trip on Sunday when the visit the Orlando Magic at the Amway Center.
Who caught your eyes the most on the New York Knicks tonight? Leave your comments below!