With the Knicks down 2 and 5 seconds left, Evan Fournier drove to the basket but had his shot blocked — the ball coming out to Alec Burks — who stepped behind the 3-pt line and shot what would have been the game winner — but it bounced out for the Knick loss.
On the previous play, Julius Randle had driven the lane to the basket, and ripped a pass out to Burks in the corner who did hit a 3 to put the Knicks ahead — but refs ruled a foul on the pass so the 3 was negated, and Randle went to the line and hit only 1 of 2 free throws — leaving NY down 111-110 instead of bring up 112-111. (Patrick Beverly hit 1-2 free throws to give NY that final hope.)
All of that made Karl Anthony Towns drive-and-one 3-pt play with 29 seconds left stand up as the game winner.
1. Back and Forth in the Fourth
It was nip and tuck all game — NY was down by 10 at the half but had a big 3rd quarter and entered the 4th with a 5-pt lead and momentum. But the lead in the 4th went back and forth.
2. Fournier and Walker Star
Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker — the Knicks primary off-season acquisitions — starred in this game. Fournier led NY with 27 points on efficient 10-17 shooting (5-10 from 3) for a +11.
BACK-TO-BACK FOURNIER THREES pic.twitter.com/Zj9IwzW8VK
— KNICKS ON MSG (@KnicksMSGN) January 19, 2022
Walker had 19 points on 6-13 shooting (4-8 from 3) in 30 minutes as the starting point guard, after having missed a bunch of games with a knee strain.
3. Randle and Barrett
Julius Randle had 21 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists, and a +9. But his shooting remains off — he was 6-15 overall and 0-4 from 3.
.@J30_RANDLE BULLY BALL 💪 pic.twitter.com/24w06buK6U
— KNICKS ON MSG (@KnicksMSGN) January 19, 2022
RJ Barrett continued his aggressive play but made some mistakes; he 17 points on 6-16 shooting and 7 turnovers.
.@RjBarrett6 float game 💧 pic.twitter.com/L5cwAfz9vL
— KNICKS ON MSG (@KnicksMSGN) January 19, 2022
Anthony Edwards had 21 points on 8-17 shooting (2-9 from 3). The last time the two teams met, Barrett missed a last-second shot that would have won the game, and afterwards Edwards said Minnesota were hoping Barrett would take the last shot.
The Boxscore
https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore/_/gameId/401360485
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