Final Score: New York Knicks 79 Toronto Raptors 96
Like they say, all good things must come to an end. For the Knicks, that meant the winning streak under interim Head Coach Mike Woodson. The Knicks struggle in Toronto, and did not help their cause coming out flat. They mounted a comeback going on a brief 8-0 run in the 2nd quarter, but the offense and defense only got worse for the Knicks as the game went on, as the Raptors went on to blow the Knicks out.
-Amar’e Dominates Again
For a 3rd straight game, Amar’e Stoudemire lived up to his nickname S.T.A.T (Standing Tall and Talented). Stoudemire was scoring with explosiveness on the block and on the fast break, leading to 17 points. Stoudemire also showed up on the defensive end, having 2 blocks. Stoudemire is finally starting to bring the emotional energy on a nightly basis that he had last season when he was a part of the MVP conversation.
-Out Hustled and Muscled
The Knicks were unable to dominate the paint as they are capable of doing. The Knicks were outscored in the pain 44-42 and out-rebounded 46-39. The loss of Jared Jeffries was glaring, as the Knicks were unable to keep the Raptors on the perimeter. DeMar DeRozan and Gary Forbes were able to penetrate the paint at will with little resistance, making it difficult for the Knicks to mount any type of comeback.
Carmelo Anthony was able to work well in the paint along with Amar’e Stoudemire because the outside shots were not falling for the Knicks. Anthony took his frustrations out around the basket after struggling in the first quarter, especially on the break. Anthony finished with 10 points in the first half, but was quite in the 2nd half along with the rest of their Knick teammates.
Tyson Chandler had possibly his worst game of the season also, scoring only 2 points and missing numerous shots around the basket. He was able to grab 11 rebounds, but did not have as big an impact on the game as normal. He cannot be the only person on the defensive end protecting the rim.
-Live and Die by the 3
Steve Novak continued to stroke it from deep, going 5-9 from 3 point land. The rest of the Knicks were not as successful, combining for 0-19. J.R. Smith led the building of the brick house, going 0-5 followed by 0-4 from Carmelo Anthony and 0-3 from Jeremy Lin and Iman Shumpert. The Knicks will struggle to win games combing poor shooting like that will lackluster effort on the defensive end.
-Taking Care of the Ball
The Knicks played sloppy tonight, evident by the 22 turnovers. The Raptors were not able to convert those turnovers into points, scoring only 12 points off the Knicks turnovers. The turnovers just killed any momentum the Knicks were building. Turnovers not only kill a team’s momentum, but also their collective spirits. The Knicks never hung their heads, but were not able to overcome the turnovers and lack of perimeter defense.
The Knicks get back at it tomorrow night at Madison Square Garden against the Detroit Pistons at 7:30 P.M. ET
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