Knicks’ offense struggles to keep pace in 116-99 loss to Timberwolves

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The Knicks dropped their second straight home game on Friday night, as they lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves, 116-99, at Madison Square Garden.

Here are the takeaways…

— Karl-Anthony Towns didn’t have a desired reunion with former Timberwolves teammates — he was ruled out for a second straight game due to a right thumb sprain. Towns, who suffered the injury in the Knicks’ loss to the Detroit Pistons on Monday, is also dealing with a bone chip in the thumb, although the team said pregame that particular issue didn’t keep him out of Friday’s lineup.

— While the Timberwolves opened the game with two-made threes, it didn’t take long for Jalen Brunson to drain buckets of his own. He scored 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting before the first media timeout, and finished the opening quarter with 13. Brunson wasn’t the only sharpshooter, though — Michael Conley, filling in for an injured Donte DiVincenzo, added 10 first-quarter points on 4-of-5 shooting.

— Julius Randle, who received a warm ovation from The Garden crowd during lineup introductions, didn’t take his first shot until the 3:46 mark in the first. Much to the delight of Knicks fans, Randle’s attempt was an airball corner three, and the crowd collectively chuckled.

— Anthony Edwards started cold, missing his first six shots, but his teammates had no issue picking him up. The Timberwolves made six threes in the opening quarter — they entered Friday ranked fourth in the NBA in three percentage — and held a 28-21 lead after 12 minutes.

— Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau, displeased with the defensive effort just one minute into the second quarter, burned a timeout after the Timberwolves bumped their lead to 10. The break in action sparked offense from both teams, and the Knicks’ first-half hero was Cam Payne, who unexpectedly scored 18 points in seven minutes off the bench.

— While both teams were exceptionally efficient from the perimeter in the first half, Minnesota tickled more twine. They shot a strong 13-of-21 from deep, 55 percent overall from the floor, and led 63-59 at halftime. As for New York, they shot a crisp 49 percent overall with 10 made threes…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/knicks-offense-struggles-keep-pace-025914897.html

Author : SNY

Publish date : 2025-01-18 02:59:00

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