Scenes from New York dropping a major Deuce on the Dubs

On Monday night, the New York Knicks (40-27) paid a visit to the Golden State Warriors (35-31) for game three of a West Coast trip. Thibs opted for a smaller lineup with OG Anunoby out and starting Miles McBride at shooting guard paid major dividends. New York won the first quarter 30-22 and, despite a late surge by the Warriors, entered intermission with a 62-56 lead. The visitors held off a rally to outscore the Californians 37-32 in the third, and even though the hosts started the final frame 7-0, New York held on to complete the wire-to-wire win, 119-112.

Hats off to Deuce McBride for a career-best night: 29 points on 9-of-13 shooting, including 6-of-9 from deep in 47 minutes. Isaiah Hartenstein dominated, contributing 13 points, 10 boards, and four assists, and was a team-high +26 in his 25 minutes. Josh Hart played the ENTIRE 48 minutes and logged a 10-point, 11-rebound, 11-assist triple-double. And Jalen Brunson dropped 34 points on 12-of-25 shooting. One team looked ready for the Playoffs; the other had Stephen Curry, who scored 27 points on 8-of-20 shooting.

A supremely satisfying win!

First Half

With OG Anunoby absent due to an elbow flare-up, coach Tom Thibodeau went small against the Dubs. Rather than reinserting Precious Achiuwa into the power forward position, he shifted Donte DiVincenzo and Josh Hart down one position each and started Miles McBride at the two guard. Smart!

New York kicked off the contest with eight unanswered points, while the Warriors whiffed on four shots and committed three early turnovers. By the seven-minute mark, Isaiah Hartenstein had collected eight points, the Knicks were up 15-4, and a nonplussed Steve Kerr called a timeout. His Warriors would shoot 9-of-21 from the field and 2-of-7 from deep in the quarter.

While Jalen Brunson sliced through the opponent’s defensive schemes like a samurai, and McBride bull’s-eyed three of four three-point attempts, the Knicks advanced by as many as 14. Then Golden State’s Jonathan Kuminga and Trayce Jackson-Davis capitalized on frontcourt mismatches, combined for 12 points, and narrowed New York’s lead to 30-22 heading into the second.

New York soldiered on in the second. Deuce continued to incinerate the nets, en route to 19 first-half points (most of all scorers) while shooting 6-of-8 from the field, 5-of-7 from downtown. That was a career-high for threes for the confident youngster. . . with another half of basketball to play. A marked difference from his one-shot performance in Sacramento on Saturday!

Chris Paul pitched in 12 bench points to hound the Knicks, but the visitors answered by pushing their lead to 15. The refs permitted a lot of blatant contact—Jalen Brunson got whacked on nearly every drive but shot merely one free-throw in the half. A late-quarter, ten-point run brought the Warriors within five. By intermission, New York’s lead had dwindled to 62-56.

Fun fact: McBride and Josh Hart were the first two NBA players to play an entire first half this season. New York had led the entire time. They had won the battle of the boards, 24-19. Both teams had scored 26 points in the paint and eight fast-break points. Both teams had shot 48% from the field, and the Knicks had a slight edge from deep, 43%-41%.

Second Half

When the teams last played, Donte DiVincenzo hit a ghastly 29% from the floor, including 2-of-12 from deep. Much had been made about the game, since it would be his first chance to face his former team and mentor (Curry). Tonight, DiVo’s statline was easier on the eyes: 18 points, 7-of-13 from the field and 4-of-8 on three-pointers. His 10 third-quarter points were important to maintaining a healthy distance from the oncoming Warriors.

And, of course, there’s Jalen Brunson. In the following clip, he defies the laws of physics yet again. Later in the quarter, Gary Payton II would violate Jalen’s landing area for a flagrant foul. Jalen swished all three freebies, naturally.

At the tail end of the quarter, McBride hit two free throws and stole an inbound pass. He menaced those Warriors on both ends and was especially tough on Stephen Curry. Once again, Deuce and Hart had played the entire quarter. New York entered the final frame up 99-88.

All those minutes took their toll. Deuce’s legs appeared to be tired at the start of the quarter while the Warriors hustled on a 7-0 run. Thibs let him rest for a minute and a half before sending him back into the grinder—McBride’s defense was just that important. His triple in Draymond Green’s face with 3:30 remaining was one of the most bad-assed shots of the season, and gave the Knicks a late 12-point cushion. The Warriors kept fighting but missed important buckets and New York never relented. Sweet victory? Oh, one of the sweetest of the season.

Next Up

Box Score

Heading to Denver to take on the defending champion Nuggets on Thursday. Safe travels, Knickerbockers. . . . And dear ESPN, please don’t subject us to any more of that incorrigible homer Bob Myers. Sheesh.