Knicks Have No Answer for Giannis
Photo: Special to the NY Beacon
By Andrew Rosario
The last team the struggling New York Knicks (5 losses in their last 6 games) wanted to see, after losing to the Cleveland Cavaliers last Wednesday night, was the Milwaukee Bucks. Cleveland followed up their win over New York by surprising the defending NBA champion Bucks last Wednesday night. The Knicks were the perfect remedy for a Milwaukee team looking to get back on the winning track.
Photo: Special to the NY Beacon
If there was one thing that led to New York’s success last season, it was their defensive intensity. It was the reason the organization hired defensive guru Tom Thibodeau as their head coach. They have regressed defensively this year which accounted for their 23-26 record when they stepped on the Fiserv Forum floor.
When Knicks guard Eric Fournier hit a jump shot with 6:28 left in the first quarter, New York trailed 18-17. They then watched Milwaukee to score 21 points taking a 39-30 first quarter lead. The Bucks connected on 4, 3-pointers.
The defensive struggles continued in the second quarter after a Jrue Holiday jumper with 9:03 saw them fall behind by 14 (50-36). Forward Obi Toppin (4 points) helped the Knicks get back in the game with help from RJ Barrett who scored 8 points. Julius Randle’s jumper got them with 1 (64-63) but Bucks Pat Connaughton makes a 25-foot three-point jumper at the buzzer to close out the half at 67-63. The second half showed why Milwaukee’s center Giannis Antetokounmpo has won 2 regular season MVP’s to go along with a All-Star and Finals MVP.
Knicks guard Kemba Walker’s (8 points) basket got them within 3 at 73-70 with 9:03 left in the third quarter. Giannis hits 2 free throws, extending the lead to 7 (77-70) before scoring 5 more points taking a 93-88 going into the final quarter. He was just getting started.
The Greek Freak scored 7 points in the first 3 and a half minutes to begin the fourth quarter and when the Knicks looked up, they were down 102-93. They could not recover as Milwaukee ran away with the 123-108 win. Giannis finished with 38 points on 12 of 19 field goals and 12 of 16 free throws. Fournier led the Knicks with 25 followed by Barrett’s 23. Randle, once again, was a non-factor scoring only 11 points in 37 minutes.
Thibodeau recognized what Giannis did to his team. “Thats’s what makes him who he is,” he said. “There are times you can defend him really well, and he still can score the ball. He did everything tonight.”
New York lost for the 6th time in their last 7 games and saw their record fall to 23-27. It dropped them down to 12th place behind the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference.
New York comes home the next three games beginning Monday night when they host the Sacramento Kings. The Minnesota Timberwolves come in Wednesday night before they host LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers Saturday night.
