The Knicks overcame a 17-point fourth-quarter deficit thanks to outstanding play from their youngsters, coming back to defeat the Miami Heat 111-103 on Friday night.
Here are some key takeaways…
– Once again without Julius Randle, Tom Thibodeau started Alec Burks, Evan Fournier, RJ Barrett, Obi Toppin, and Jericho Sims. Mitchell Robinson was available after missing time with a sore back, but he was not in the starting five.
– Without Robinson down low to get things started, Miami’s Bam Adebayo got going early, scoring five of Miami’s first 10 points. On the other end, though, the Knicks got off to a hot start from beyond the arc, hitting three of their first four from downtown.
The Knicks’ 3-point shooting slowed down a bit from there, though, as they missed six in a row to allow Miami to take a six-point lead. The Heat shot 65% the first, taking a 32-25 lead into the second. The Knicks shot 5 of 16 from long range, with Barrett (minus-8 in the quarter) going 1 for 5 from 3.
– Coming off the bench, Robinson looked healthy in his return to the floor, throwing down an alley-oop slam at the start of the second for his sixth and seventh points of the game. But the Knicks’ defense struggled to come up with answers for the Heat, as Miami pushed their lead to 13 with about eight minutes left.
The Knicks trailed by double-digits for most of the quarter, but a Barrett layup made it an eight-point game with three minutes to play. The Knicks cut into the lead, but a Jimmy Butler buzzer-beater gave the Heat a 58-49 lead at the break. Barrett led the Knicks with 10 points at the half, despite shooting just 3 of 9 from the floor. Butler led the way with 17 points for the Heat, who shot 58.3% from the floor as a team.
– Toppin hit a couple of three pointers to bring the Knicks within 10 in the early minutes of the third quarter, but Butler and Adebayo continued to be too much for the road team. Midway through the quarter, Miami pushed their lead to 15 points, their largest of the game.
Toppin’s athleticism and energy were on display in the third, and every time the Heat looked to pull away, the Knicks were able to answer and keep the deficit to around 10 points.
– The Knicks kept chipping away to start the fourth. A Quentin Grimes 3 with around nine minutes to go cut the Miami lead to eight, the closest the Knicks had been since the first half. Later in the quarter, a Miles McBride three capped off a 14-2 Knicks run, bringing New York within five.
– Grimes continued to lead the charge, and as he knocked down a 3 with just over six minutes to go, he tied the game, erasing what was once a 17-point deficit for the Knicks. The Knicks started the fourth on a 24-6 run, spurred on by their young players like Toppin, McBride and Immanuel Quickley.
Quickley took over in the fourth quarter, scoring 20 of his 23 points, as the young second unit led the Knicks back to an improbable win. IQ led the Knicks with 23 points, while Barrett added 18, and Toppin had 15.
The Knicks outscored Miami 38-15 in the fourth.
Highlights
What’s next
The Knicks (32-42) head to Detroit and take on the Pistons (20-54) Sunday at 3:30 p.m.