The irregular New York Knicks achieved an important victory in their visit to Atlanta by 99-90, breaking a streak of seven consecutive wins for the Hawks.
Alec Burks was the hero of the Knickerbockers with his scoring record of the season (23 points); to which he added 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. The guard started as a starter against the losses of Kemba and Rose, and was especially successful in the third period with 15 of his 21 goals.
In the Hawks, their star Trae Young was the most outstanding with 33 points, 7 assists and 5 of 10 in triples, being his fourth consecutive game reaching thirty points.
Both teams played the back to back and they were meeting for the first time since the Hawks won easy in the first round of the playoffs 4-1.
“It was a great victory regardless of who it was,” said RJ Barrett, who had 15 points and 7 rebounds. “Especially after last night, arriving and recovering was very important to us,” he acknowledged.
New Yorkers are 11-9 after losing in three of the last four games with significant absences in their roster. Kemba Walker could not play on break; Derrick Rose drags a sprained ankle; veteran Taj Gibson has a hip injury; and Nerlens Noel’s right knee didn’t allow him to jump onto the floor either. Additionally, Mitchell Robinson limped out of the game in the third quarter and did not return.
“We played very hard,” said Tom Thibodeau. “That was the first thing we wanted to establish, and they are a great team. They missed a few pitches that they normally would, but I thought we were doing quite well. And to beat a good team like this on the road, you have to play hard. It requires everyone to work together. And we have been quite good, “he explained.
Other highlights of the match were Clint Capela with 16 points and 21 rebounds to his credit; and in the Knicks Evan Fournier with 20 points and 7 of 13 in shooting from the field.
For his part, second night to forget about Julius Randle with 8 points and 11 rebounds, including 3 of 14 in shooting and 0 of 3 in triples.
(Cover photo: Sarah Stier / Getty Images)
