NEW YORK – The New York Knicks have gone relatively unnoticed this National Basketball Association (NBA) season, lying in sixth in the Eastern Conference.
But it was through pure grit and determination that they have got to where they are, on the back of an eight-game winning streak – the longest current run in the league.
The Knicks now stand at 18-13 overall as they continued their push towards a play-off spot with an emphatic 132-94 win over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday.
“No one has talked about the streak at all,” said New York guard Jalen Brunson, who had 21 points.
“Obviously, we tell each other to keep it rolling. But, we’re just trying to be the best team we can be and just focus on one day at a time.”
Julius Randle finished with 15 points and 12 rebounds, Mitchell Robinson had nine points and 11 rebounds and Miles McBride added 10 points.
“We have a lot of players on this team who are capable of having monster games,” Brunson added, referring to Immanuel Quickley who led the team with 22 points, and Quentin Grimes (19) and RJ Barrett (18) also making big contributions.
“It’s not surprising when someone like ‘Quick’ plays that way or ‘Q’ having that type of game or even Deuce (McBride) getting double figures (10). When they do it, it’s definitely a plus.”
The Knicks were never behind in the game after opening up an 8-0 lead and ran away with the game in the second half.
The Warriors cut the deficit to 10 three times in the third quarter before the Knicks began pulling away for good. Robinson’s free throws gave New York their first 20-point lead at 88-67 with 5min 37sec left.
They took their biggest lead when Svi Mykhailiuk drained a pair of free throws for the game’s final points with 58 seconds left.
“Winning naturally gains confidence,” Randle said.
“But, I’m not going to put much into a winning streak or whatever. It’s still December.”
Golden State have won just three games on the road this season as the defending champions dropped to 15-17.
Elsewhere, the Washington Wizards outscored the Phoenix Suns 25-12 in the final 5 1/2 minutes and snapped a 10-game losing streak with a 113-110 win over the hosts.
Washington (12-20) got 29 points from Kyle Kuzma and 27 points from Bradley Beal, and each of them added six rebounds and six assists.
The Suns (19-13) took a 98-88 lead midway through the fourth quarter on a pair of Deandre Ayton, the last of his 30 points. Phoenix then went the next 5:17 scoring just two points while Washington ripped off 21 points.
Beal scored on three consecutive possessions during the decisive run, Kuzma knocked down a pair of three-pointers and Deni Avdija scored nine of his 16 points.
In Miami, Nikola Vucevic put up 29 points and DeMar DeRozan 24 points as the Chicago Bulls beat an under-strength Miami Heat 113-103 to end a four-game losing run.
The Heat, who had won their previous four outings, were without Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry and Caleb Martin and although Bam Adebayo stepped up scoring 27 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, they were blown away in the third quarter.
The Bulls (12-18) went on a 30-7 run in the third and were never in danger of losing from then on as the Heat slipped to a 16-16 record.
“It was good to get a win, get that positive feeling a little bit, especially after that very tough, terrible loss (150-126 to the Minnesota Timberwolves),” Vucevic said.
“It was needed. Hopefully we can learn from this.” AFP, REUTERS
