Darwin Ham Finally Bows To Pressure And Announces His Departure After Knicks Lose
One game after being “that team” that broke the San Antonio Spurs’ 18-game losing streak, the Los Angeles Lakers took to their home court to face a hungry New York Knicks Squad.
New York entered Monday night’s matchup having lost four of its last six contests — the worst of which being a four-point loss to the Utah Jazz on the road — and needing a win to both avoid being swept by the resident Southern California squads and prevent back-to-back losses.
Los Angeles, on the other hand, got a chance to celebrate its In-Season Tournament victory in front of a packed house, adding a banner to the rafters to commemorate the perfect stint it had in group play and in Las Vegas.
The Knicks had a chance to earn their win and spoil the Lakers’ big night at home, and they took full advantage — handling business en route to a 114-109 victory
New York out-rebounded the Lakers on both ends of the floor, which allowed it to earn multiple second-chance opportunities — thanks in part to Isaiah Hartenstein’s 17 boards — to extend their lead throughout the game. Julius Randle, Jalen Brunson and Immanuel Quickley served as the Knicks’ three-headed dragon, combining for 76 points in a top-heavy affair. Randle notched a double-double in the win.
For the Lakers, it was a near identical point distribution. Anthony Davis, LeBron James and Austin Reaves made up Los Angeles’ three-headed dragon and combined for the same 77 points on their end, but it was sloppy play at the end of the third quarter that forced them to play from behind in a game that left no room for miscues.
From the jump, both teams engaged in back-and-forth action. A balanced attack from the Knicks — that is, offensive production from Donte DiVincenzo, Julius Randle and Jalen Brunson — allowed them to get out front early despite some fast points from LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
By the midway point of the first period, New York had a slim one-point lead, but was able to break it open to take an eight-point lead to the second quarter.
The Knicks continued to roll in the latter 12 minutes of the first half behind Immanuel Quickley, Randle and Brunson, though the Lakers kept things interesting as the clock to halftime wound down. A Jaxson Hayes dunk slimmed New York’s lead down to just four points after just two minutes of second-period action, but from there, the Knicks responded. And well.
Less than a minute after the Lakers cut the lead down, it was back up. Three straight makes by the Knicks extended their cushion to just one bucket below double-digits, and the momentum quickly shifted, with the highlight coming on a full-court pass from former Laker Josh Hart to Quickley on the other end.
New York found itself up by seven points with just 1:26 to play in the first half, and a couple of Hart free throws made it seem like they’d be able to hold that lead, but the Lakers had other plans.
Davis converted an And-1 to start the scoring from that point, and D’Angelo Russell piggy-backed with a 3-pointer of his own before Davis brought it home with a jump shot to neutralize the Knicks’ lead and give Los Angeles a slight edge.
The third quarter went largely in favor of the Lakers. At least, it started that way. James added five more points to continue the Lakers’ late-half run and further his team’s cushion, but a slew of scoring from DiVincenzo, R.J. Barrett and Randle reversed that lead, and as the third quarter waned, so, too, did the Lakers’ offensive success.
The Knicks finished the third quarter with a 15-0 run to take a 10-point lead to the final quarter, and that ended up being the dagger in the Lakers’ side. Despite putting together a strong playing-from-behind effort, they couldn’t quite get over the hump and ultimately fell short — having to play the fouling game under a minute in hopes of coming back.
Los Angeles got as close as three points down the stretch, but it was too little too late as New York pulled out a scrappy 114-109 victory on the road
With the win, the Knicks improve to 15-11 and avoid a sweep by the Los Angeles teams and added a win to continue their back-and-forth trend of winning every other game. They remain in fifth place in the Eastern Conference and inch one game closer to the Orlando Magic.
The Knicks will return to New York on Wednesday but will finish off their road trip when they face the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG).