THE Knicks had an offensive explosion Wednesday night, beating the Charlotte Hornets, 129-101.
Here are the points to remember…
– Things got off to a quick start as both offenses fired and shot the ball extremely well in the first quarter. Josh Hartin particular, had a fantastic first quarter in what was his second start of the season after spending 38 minutes in a win over the Nets last time out.
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The 30-year-old looked like an inspired man and scored 11 points on a perfect 4-for-4 from the field in eight minutes on the floor. He also had a steal and an assist in what was a fast-paced and entertaining first quarter.
– It wasn’t just Hart, though, as every starter saw at least two baskets go by in the first period. Jalen Brunson (9), Cities of Karl-Anthony (6), Mikal Bridges (6) and Miles McBride (5), along with Hart, combined to score 37 points and shoot 15 of 20 (75 percent) from the field.
— Mitchell Robinson led everyone with three rebounds in four minutes coming off the bench, while Jordan Clarkson And Guerschon Yabusele also saw a few minutes.
— The Hornets had an equally successful first quarter with Collin Sexton leading the scoring charge with seven points coming off the bench. Ball LaMelo And Miles Bridges each had five and after 12 minutes, New York led 37-31.
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— The scoring slowed early in the second quarter as both teams started the period 3 of 11 from the field. Nonetheless, the Knicks continued to increase their lead and went up by 15 after Brunson completed an and-one with 3:35 left in the half as Charlotte struggled mightily on offense.
– Things exploded from there, with New York ending the half up 15-2 to take complete control. Both stabs came in the final minute when Brunson and Hart each made deep three-pointers, with Hart coming in with 1.2 seconds remaining. The last-second triple was Hart’s third of the half as he led all scorers with 19 points (7 of 9 from the field, 3 of 3 from deep, 2 of 2 from the free throw line) before heading into the locker room with the Knicks leading, 72-47.
— Basically from there, New York did well to not let the Hornets get back into the game in the second half as Brunson carried the load offensively by scoring 16 points in the third quarter. It wasn’t his most efficient night, shooting 14 of 28 from the field and 2 of 6 from three, but Brunson finished with a game-high 33 points.
– After his incredible first half, Hart took over from Brunson in the second and let the point guard cook. Still, Hart finished with 22 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and three steals in a do-it-all type performance. Towns had a double-double (19 points, 10 rebounds), Bridges had 18 points and McBride added 19 to complete most of the Knicks’ scoring.
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— New York shot an incredible 57 percent from the field, 52 percent from deep and 89 percent from the charity stripe in one of its most impressive offensive performances, especially on the road. It was enough to earn the team’s third road win of the season and they are now 3-5 away from MSG.
– The Knicks are now 2-1 in the NBA Cup group stage.
Game MVP: Josh Hart
Hart was everywhere in the first half and was one of the main reasons the Knicks took such a big lead into halftime.
Highlights
What’s next
The Knicks return home after a five-game road trip to face the Milwaukee Bucks Friday night in their final NBA Cup group stage game. The alert is set for 7:30 p.m.
