Knicks too much for weary-looking Nets in matchup at Barclays Center
Knicks forward Julius Randle is defended by Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith in the first half of an NBA basketball game at Barclays Center on Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
The Knicks wasted little time letting the Nets know who runs New York. Consider the sights and sounds from their 121-102 win at Barclays Center.
Julius Randle exited the game to cheers that drowned out Nets fans who left earlier. At another point in the fourth quarter, Immanuel Quickley slapped hands with director and Knicks fan Spike Lee after a made three-pointer.
Quickley earned a technical foul but it didn’t matter. Any rivalry talk was drowned out Wednesday as visiting fans chanted “Lets Go Knicks” during the final seconds.
“They were better than us tonight in all facets of the game,” Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said.
Both teams are also in opposite directions. The Knicks (16-11) won for the third time in four games. The Nets (13-14) lost their fourth consecutive game, their longest losing streak of the season and are 1-5 over their last six games.
The Knicks led for all but 19 seconds. They dominated the interior with 52 paint points and pushed the tempo every chance they could with 21 fast-break points to the Nets’ 16.
In the third quarter, Randle missed a free throw yet grabbed his own rebound to attempt a putback. He missed but it showed the difference in effort and execution between the Knicks and their Brooklyn neighbors.
“It’s always fun,” said Randle, who had 26 points and seven rebounds. “Obviously it’s a crosstown rivalry but in the grand scheme of things, it’s just another game for us to keep building, getting better.”
Donte DiVincenzo added 23 points and Quickley had 19 points off the bench. Both combined to shoot 9-16 on three-pointers, with DiVincenzo going 5-for-10.
The Knicks led by as many 14 points in the first quarter thanks to Randle starting strong early with 12 points in the period. They also had 10 fast-break points as they turned rebounds into transition opportunities.
“I love the way we started the game,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “It was a defensive tone to it and then that also led to fast breaks and easy scoring opportunities. Then we got a good rhythm from there.”
Before the game, the Knicks announced center Jericho Sims would miss at least 7-10 days with a sprained ankle, Isaiah Hartenstein started in his place, his first start of the season, and was effective with 10 rebounds, his third consecutive game with double figures in rebounds.
His performance became more important after The Athletic reported late Wednesday night that center Mitchell Robinson, who had ankle surgery last week, could miss the entire season as the Knicks applied for a disabled player exception, which applies to players a team expects to be sidelined through June 15.
The Nets returned to New York Tuesday just like the Knicks but after a five-game road trip, they still looked a step behind. It was evident with Mikal Bridges missing his first eight shots.
Yet the Nets rallied in the second behind their three-point shooting. They started 4-for-4 from long range and got within four, 46-42. But despite shooting 5-8 on threes in the quarter, it couldn’t offset poor shooting inside the three-point line.
The Knicks led 60-51 at halftime then opened the third quarter on an 11-0 run. Vaughn called timeout to stop the bleeding but to no avail. The Knicks led by as many as 25 points in the second half.
The Nets’ lone bright spots came from Cam Johnson finding his shot. Johnson shot 8-for-14 from the field and his 20 points shared the team lead with Cam Thomas, who added five assists.
Day’Ron Sharpe had a career-high 15 rebounds off the bench. Bridges, however, shot 4-for-21, his worst shooting performance of the season and comes after he was 4-for-16 in the Nets’ loss Monday at the Jazz.
Jalen Brunson had 16 points and eight assists, a relatively quiet night. But Randle's hot start was more than enough in a game where the Knicks dominated from the opening tipoff.
“Very aggressive, team defense were terrific,” Thibodeau said of Randle. “He and Donte got us off to a great start. We played with a lead and I thought that was important for us.”
Evan Barnes covers the Nets for Newsday. He previously covered Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
