Ice-Cold Knicks lose third straight, fall to Clippers

The Clippers’ physicality was too much for the Knicks to handle as they lose in Los Angeles behind a frustrated and struggling Julius Randle.

The New York Knicks (39-30) dropped their third straight game on their West Coast trip to the Los Angeles Clippers (36-33) by a final score of 95-106. Despite some great stretches of basketball from both teams earlier in the game, the Clippers pulled away late in the third with no real answer from the Knicks on either end of the floor.

The Knicks were without Jalen Brunson, who re-aggravated his sore left foot in their loss to the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night. Immanuel Quickley would get the start again in place of Brunson and would be seeking to get back on track on offense after a low-scoring night against the Kings.

The first quarter was lopsided, with the Clippers playing very efficiently on offense while the Knicks looked to have carried over their inability to shoot from Sacramento into Los Angeles. However, their defense was strong throughout the entire period, and it helped them to remain in the game despite shooting just 35% from the field and 29% from deep in the first. Quentin Grimes was one of two players able to capitalize on both ends of the floor for the entire first quarter, as he played solid defense and was able to hit three of his six attempted shots. Immanuel Quickley joined Grimes towards the end of the period as he hit two huge three-pointers to close out the first 12 minutes of play, getting the Knicks to within one point of the Clippers by the second.

New York had to maintain their defensive stand if they wanted to keep trying to find their groove on offense, but George started out hot off of some poor defensive transitions. The Knicks were staying with it, though, thanks to some great scoring from Josh Hart and Obi Toppin. Toppin was especially taking it to the rack strongly, scoring eight points in five minutes off the bench. The Knicks finally felt in control of a game for the first time since their Celtics thriller about halfway through the second of this contest, as ball movement and excellent finishing were slowly helping them to climb back to keep tying Los Angeles or staying within a few points. Quickley also continued his solid play, both getting to the line and doing a great job of facilitating for both units. The period wound down with some back-and-forth shooting between the two teams, and thanks to some great possessions from the formerly cold Julius Randle, the Knicks wrapped up the first half up two on the Clippers.

Early in the third quarter, both teams were taking a lot of time on the clock attempting to read the opposing teams’ defense and find their weaker spots. For the Knicks, this meant attempting to use extra passes to open up the three-point line. They were able to take advantage of those open shots, and they were going back and forth once again with Los Angeles who were also hitting their threes. This was especially true of George and Kawhi Leonard, who were both trying to take over the scoring for Los Angeles. Behind some crafty scoring and tough rebounding from Mitchell Robinson, though, once again New York was able to hang around and answer the call against such a potent duo on offense. Things got discordant yet again for the Knicks down the stretch of the period, with Randle looking a bit lost on offense and the teams’ defense allowing too many rebounds from Los Angeles on the other end. The third ended on a sour note, with Randle picking up a technical and allowing the Clippers to gain a two-point lead entering the fourth.

The fourth kicked off with a few tough shots made by Los Angeles, extending their lead to eight. Despite some attempts from New York to get more done in the paint, they were having a tough time against Mason Plumlee and the Clippers’ defense. The Knicks were having a hard time finding someone with a hot hand, especially with Randle on the bench. Once he got back on the floor, he immediately hit a three-pointer to get New York back to within seven. But, Los Angeles just would not go away. It was becoming more and more difficult to imagine the Knicks being able to come back in this game without playing the same defense they had when they were hanging around earlier in the contest. The game went completely the Clippers’ way the rest of the game, and the Knicks dropped their third straight on this West Coast road trip.

Quickley led all New York scorers with 26 points. He also had 10 rebounds and four assists as well as a steal. Randle had 19 points, eight rebounds, and three assists, while Barrett had 11 points, two rebounds, an assist, and a steal. Grimes had seven points, two rebounds, and four assists. Robinson had six points, 14 rebounds, an assist, a steal, and two blocks.

Toppin finished up with 10 points, five rebounds, and an assist, and Hart ended with 10 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. Isaiah Hartenstein had four points, five rebounds, three assists, and a steal. Deuce McBride had two points, a steal, and a block.

New York will stay put in Los Angeles and battle with the Lakers tomorrow night at 9 PM EST.