New York Knicks End Homestand On High Note With Victory Over San Antonio Spurs
The New York Knicks ended their homestand on a high note Sunday afternoon, picking up a victory over the San Antonio Spurs.
There has been a lot of turmoil following the New York Knicks recently. The product on the court has been bad but they have had to deal with plenty off the court as well.
Earlier this week Knicks great Charles Oakley was ejected from the arena and arrested, setting up an ugly spat with owner James Dolan. There has been the constant prodding of Phil Jackson, who continually takes shots at Carmelo Anthony. Anthony has had to deal with constant trade rumors as well.
Above all, the Knicks are not playing well. A lot of the problems off the court would quiet down had the Knicks played well on the court. Unfortunately, that has not happened. The losses have piled up since Christmas and the Knicks looked well on their way to another one Sunday afternoon.
The Knicks were wrapping up a five-game homestand, one of the worst in franchise history. The Knicks have never gone winless on a homestand that was five or more games. It looked like this season would be the first as the Knicks were riding a four-game losing streak and the final game of the homestand was against the San Antonio Spurs.
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The Knicks had lost the first four games of the homestand in excruciating ways. Their comeback attempt against the Cleveland Cavaliers fell short. The Los Angeles Lakers blew them out in the second game, and they blew a fourth quarter lead against the Los Angeles Clippers in the third game. Game four they forget to play defense against the Denver Nuggets, as Nikola Jokic scored a career-high 40 points.
Now, the Knicks were set to host one of the best teams in the NBA in the Spurs. It looked like the Knicks were going to set a dubious record as the Spurs are the second best team on the road in the NBA. But, the team finally found some pride and effort Sunday afternoon.
The Knicks would bring it right from the tip against the Spurs. The energy and effort were there, especially on the defensive end. It resulted in a Knicks victory, as they knocked off the Spurs 94-90. It was a vert unlikely win, but a much-welcomed one for New York.
The Knicks held the Spurs to 36.3 percent shooting on the afternoon. They limited their three-point shooting, as San Antonio made only 6-of-29 from deep, compared to 9-of-14 for the Knicks. The Knicks were also able to play basically even at the foul line, which has been a problem all season. The Spurs attempted 22 foul shots, while the Knicks had 21.
The Knicks were able to overcome the dominance that the Spurs had on the offensive glass. San Antonio constantly got second and third chances, as they had 21 offensive rebounds. The Knicks weren’t deflated by that, as they kept up the defensive effort no matter how many times the Spurs were on offense.
They needed to bring that effort as well. With all the offensive rebounds the Spurs had, they attempted 91 shots, compared to only 68 for the Knicks. That kind of differential would normally spell trouble, but the Knicks brought it defensively and it paid off.
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This is the type of win that can get a team on track. The Knicks have been looking for a spark, and defeating the Spurs could provide that. They do not play again until Wednesday against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and then go into the All-Star break. It would be a huge confidence boost for the team if they could head into the break on a winning streak.