New York, N.Y. — The Knicks defeated the Raptors 112–95 at Madison Square Garden on Friday night as the road to the playoffs continues.
It felt like a playoff atmosphere at The Garden as the Knicks looked to extend their winning streak to five games against a Toronto Raptors squad coming off two convincing wins over the Miami Heat.
Former Knicks RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley were both scratched before the game and did not appear in this contest.
The Knicks showed energy early, forcing Toronto to take a timeout with 9:48 remaining in the first quarter after Karl-Anthony Towns barreled into the paint and threw it down, giving New York a 7–3 lead.
The Knicks controlled the floor in the first quarter, scoring 12 unanswered points to take a 14–3 lead.
There wasn’t much urgency from the Raptors until around the four-minute mark of the quarter, when the lead was cut to four, with the Knicks ahead 16–12.
A local note in this one involves Raptors center Sandro Mamukelashvili, who played for Seton Hall from 2017–2021. “Mamu” is the only active Seton Hall graduate currently in the NBA.
The tide turned slightly toward the end of the quarter, but the Knicks led 22–21 after one.
The Knicks started the second quarter the same way as the first…on fire. They went on a 10–0 run to take a 32–21 lead with just under nine minutes remaining in the half.
At the end of the first half, the Knicks led the Raptors 51–36.
Through the first 24 minutes, Karl-Anthony Towns led the Knicks with 14 points, followed by Jalen Brunson with 13.
With 8:13 remaining in the third quarter, the Knicks continued to pour on the pressure, leading 59–43 and forcing the Raptors to take a timeout.
The Raptors were never able to gain much of an offensive rhythm in the second half and were on their heels for most of the game.
The Knicks played full-court basketball and never let the lead slip away.
Jalen Brunson ultimately led the way for New York, tallying 29 points, with most coming from close range.
Starting strong and playing with consistency were two areas the Knicks have been working to improve as of late. Postgame, Mike Brown said, “We were pretty good in those areas.”
With the win, the Knicks officially clinched the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference and will look to build momentum heading into the playoffs in their final regular-season game on Sunday against the Charlotte Hornets at Madison Square Garden. Tip off is scheduled for 6 p.m.
