Randle Lost For The Season
Photo: Special to the NY Beacon
By Samori Benjamin
Brunson Big Night Sparks Knicks Comeback
On the day the New York Knicks got word that they will be without Julius Randle, an All-Star three of the last four seasons, they put forth a performance on Thursday night that was as huge as it was resilient. They fell down 21 points in the second quarter to the Sacramento Kings before rallying back to win in commanding fashion 120-109 at Madison Square Garden. New York got a combined 87 points from the Villanova triumvirate of Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Donte DiVincenzo. Brunson had a game-high 35 points, Hart scored 31, and DiVincenzo had 21.
The Knicks completed the comeback with 1:10 remaining in the third quarter when DiVincenzo nailed a three that tied the game at 84. From that point on the Knicks outscored Sacramento 36-25. Both teams came into the game with an identical 44-31 record. After the win the Knicks are now tied with Orlando for fourth place in the Eastern Conference with six games remaining.
New York has a 16-14 record since Julius Randle left the lineup and they were 29-17 before. Just this past Sunday Randle could be seen on the Garden court pregame shooting around and looking in good spirits, so it came as a bit of a surprise that he has been ruled out for the season. Knicks head Coach Tom Thibodeau says Julius took it up to the wire as the playoffs loom in a couple weeks, but the damage done to his right shoulder when he crashed to the floor on January 27th, was too much for him to overcome. “Some days he felt better than others, and in the end, he had to trust his gut that he could play and play the way that he plays,” Thibodeau said after the Knicks win. “Which is, he is very physical and aggressive with his shoulder, so if he can’t use his shoulder, he can’t change his style of play. So, once he got to the point where he felt like, he’d have a good day, and then maybe the next day it wouldn’t be as good. Look, at the end of the day, I trust Julius and he’s got to trust his body. So, he took it as far as he could and then he went to see some specialists again and he felt this was the best course of action. I watched the way he worked, and I think some of you guys saw it as well. I don’t want a guy out there that’s not comfortable being out there, that’s not right.”
The Knicks now go on the road for four straight against Chicago twice and the teams with the two best records in the Eastern Conference, Boston, and Milwaukee, before ending the regular season with two straight at Madison Square Garden next weekend.
