Jordi Fernández’s Brooklyn Nets fell 92-93 at home against the New York Knicks in the Big Apple derby on Friday after a hard-fought last quarter, in which they even had a shot to win it, and have now lost their 14th straight to their New York rivals.
The Knicks have dominated the New York derby with an iron fist since January 2023. The Manhattan Knicks, who had already beaten their Brooklyn neighbors by an unprecedented 54 points (+54, the largest margin in franchise history), have now won 14 straight over the Nets.
Knicks dominate in rebounding
Jordi Fernández’s team is going through a difficult streak of six consecutive defeats and only two wins in the last 18 games.
Rebounding was one of the big keys to the Knicks’ long-suffering win.
Mike Brown’s team dominated with 62 (13 of them offensive), to Brooklyn’s 45.
Karl-Anthony Towns, despite missing two free throws that would have given his team life with seconds left, was the man of the game.
The Dominican, the night’s leading scorer, contributed to New York’s victory with a double-double (26 points and 15 rebounds), in addition to 1 assist and 1 steal.
Jalen Brunson (17 points) and OG Anunoby (16 points) seconded Towns.
While Josh Minott, for the Nets, scored 22 points, followed by Ziaire Williams’ 17 and Nolan Traore’s 11 (Filed as: Kncks vs Nets).
A sluggish start for the Knicks
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Sleepy, confident and without ideas in attack.
That’s how the Knicks players came out to the game against the Nets, who saw how their Brooklyn neighbors started leading by just a few points, with a 22-14 score after twelve minutes of play.
The Knicks didn’t connect to the derby until shortly before halftime.
When several players from both teams began to engage in scuffles that heated up the night.
On an alley-oop attempt by the Knicks, Mitchell Robinson was sufficiently disturbed by Traore, who grabbed his equipment from the floor as he fell.
Robinson got angry with him, and although Traore did not reciprocate, several Nets players, including Ziaire Williams, went to reprimand him for what they considered an overreaction on the part of the Knicks power forward.
With 50-44 at halftime, Mike Brown’s team was already closer to a comeback, and they continued to insist both in the game and in personal disputes.
OG Anunoby and Nic Claxton pushed and shoved each other, which led to another brawl between the two New York teams.
They have dominated the New York derbi with an iron fist since January 2023
QuéOnnda.com
A hot ending
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It wasn’t until the third quarter when the Knicks finally managed to take the lead vs. Nets with a three-pointer by Mohamed Diawara, always on time for his appointment.
The Barclays Center crowd, which always supports a big visiting team more than the Brooklyn team, screamed loudly for the 59-60 win that put the Knicks ahead and broke the psychological barrier.
The Knicks, who after taking a 14-point lead, suffered from Brooklyn’s final surge of pride, which compromised the visitors’ victory until the final minutes.
Mike Brown’s men had to sweat it out to close out their fifth straight win.
As a curiosity, Brooklyn finished the game with a 100% efficiency in free throws (10 of 10).
Nets suffer key loss of Porter Jr.
Brooklyn was without Michael Porter Jr. with a torn left hamstring.
The Nets player, who is averaging a personal-best 24 points per game, may miss the remainder of the season.
For New York, Brooklyn-born Puerto Rican Jose Alvarado contributed 2 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound and 1 steal in 13 minutes on the court.
The Knicks (46-25) move into a tie with Boston for second place in the East, while the Nets (17-53) remain at the bottom of the East with no playoff aspirations.
Fernandez’s team faces four games away from Brooklyn, visiting Sacramento, Portland and California for a doubleheader against the Warriors and Lakers.
With information from EFE
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