In a game with plenty of implications on the current playoff picture in the East, the New York Knicks continued their winning ways as they rode to an easy win over the Toronto Raptors on the road on Tuesday night.
Towns and Brunson Star for Knicks in WIn
In a familiar sight for New York fans this season, the dynamic duo of Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson once again led the way in another Knicks win tonight. Both players would combine for 47 points in the win, with each player dropping a nice double-double in the win. Towns would finish with 21 points and 12 rebounds, while Brunson would score a team-high 26 points and dish out 10 assists as he played floor general for the Knicks offense tonight.
The Knicks’ offense was operating at a high level against Toronto, as they shot an impressive 57% from the floor in the win. Brunson’s playmaking skills tonight would prove to be infectious, as the Knicks finished with 32 total assists on 46 made shots for the game. New York would have 6 players score in double digits, with all 5 starters scoring over 10 points as well.
While both Brunson and Towns would serve as the focal point on offense in New York’s win, the play of the other players within the Knicks’ core had stellar outings as well. The biggest x-factor in the win was the all-around play of Josh Hart, who nearly dropped another triple-double tonight. Hart would finish with 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists in the win. The former Villanova Wildcat is coming off a solid month in February, where he averaged 11 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists on 38% shooting from three.
Raptors Go Cold in the Second Half on Offense
Although the scoreboard makes it seem like the Knicks were in control all game, the Raptors were putting up quite the fight in the first half before faltering after halftime. Toronto held a 10-point lead early in the first quarter and entered the second quarter trailing only by one before the Knicks’ offense kicked into hyperdrive to run away with the win. The Raptors would only manage to score just 37 total points in the second half.
Much of that offensive struggle came due in part to the Raptors’ lack of bench production to help provide some scoring relief to their starting lineup. Toronto’s second unit managed to score 8 total points in the loss, as the Raptors’ starters were leaned on heavily to give the team any kind of scoring punch. The three-point line would especially be unkind to the Raptors throughout the game, as they shot just 29% from beyond the arc in the loss.
The one bright spot on offense for Toronto was the play of Brandon Ingram, who put forth a nice effort on that end of the floor tonight. Ingram would score a game-high 31 points on an efficient 11-for-20 shooting from the floor. The two-time All-Star has been a scoring machine over his last 6 games, as Ingram has scored over 20 points in 5 of those 6 games.
Knicks Stay in Contention for Top 2 Seed in the East
After surviving a rough patch back in January, the Knicks are getting hot at the right time as they continue to remain firmly in position to further ascend atop the Eastern Conference standings heading into the final 20 games of the season. New York currently sits just 2.5 games back of the Boston Celtics for 2nd place and 6.5 games behind the Detroit Pistons for the top spot in the East.
For Toronto, this loss pushes them further behind the Cleveland Cavaliers for the 4th-place spot, as they now move to two games back for that position. The Raptors have been up and down in the East standings all season, as they’ve ping ponged between the 4th-place and 6th-place spots for the better part of the last three months.
