Knicks 116, Bucks 107: “OG with a huge second half.”

Knicks survive Bucks rally, close strong behind Anunoby and Shamet

The New York Knicks (46-27) blew out the Milwaukee Bucks (40-33) in their last two meetings. Tonight’s game at Fiserv Forum, however—their final regular season encounter—promised to be more of a challenge. New York would play without three of their rotational guards and the Bucks are playing for playoff position.

The Knicks controlled this one wire to wire. Delon Wright set the tone early, filling in for injured guards and scoring 10 in the first. Mikal Bridges caught fire in the second, dropping 16 in the quarter, while rookie Tyler Kolek sparked an 8–2 run and looked sharp running the offense. The Knicks built a 17-point lead before the Bucks’ bench trimmed it to 11 at the half. Milwaukee cut it to two in the third, but New York responded with effort on the glass and clutch buckets to go up eight. In the fourth, Landry Shamet and OG Anunoby hit big threes, Kolek made plays with poise, and the Knicks locked it down late to complete the sweep, 116-107.

Quoth @back: “OG with a huge second half.” Yessir! Overall, Anunoby scored 31 points in his fifth 30+ game of the season. That’s a new career record for him, and he tied a career-high of 10 free-throw attempts. His shooting line wasn’t great (9-of-21), but his defense gleamed again with three steals. He’s also scored 20 or more in 11 of his last 15 games. What a season it’s been for Ogugua.

As for his teammates: double-doubles for Karl-Anthony Towns (14-10) and Josh Hart (13-14); Bridges finished with 26 points, five assists, and two steals; and Delon Wright contributed quality minutes in a pinch. Off the bench, Kolek was a team-high +18 with five points and assists (0 turnovers, again); and Shamet dropped 13 important points.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the home team with 30 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists. Starting in place of Damian Lillard, Ryan Rollins scored a career-high 20 point, and Kyle Kuzma added 20 more.

If the Knicks face Bucks in a postseason series . . . I like our chances.

First Half

With three-point guards injured, Tom Thibodeau bypassed rookie Tyler Kolek to start Delon Wright. That’s fitting since the 10-year veteran started the season with the Bucks. Wright rewarded the coach’s confidence in the first quarter by making 4-of-6 buckets, plus a steal and an assist to lead all scorers with 10 points.

Kyle Kuzma started hot for Milwaukee, scoring all six of the Bucks’ initial points. From there, the Knicks went on a 13-2 run to take a 15-8 lead by the middle of the quarter. Karl-Anthony Towns committed two fouls in the first three minutes, resulting in an early appearance for Mitchell Robinson. The big cajun’s defense and hustle—grabbing boards and stripping Giannis—helped to overcome mediocre Knicks’ shooting, but Kuzma’s late buckets kept it tight.

New York took a 25-19 lead into the second frame. Kolek was in the driver’s seat this time, leading an 8-2 run to give the visitors their first double-digit lead. Despite his superb passing, Kolek went scoreless in the last game; tonight, he got right into the offense, sinking a three-pointer and dishing three dimes in his first nine minutes.

New York went up by 17, thanks to improved shooting from deep, low turnovers, and Mikal Bridges scoring 16 in the quarter and 19 in the half.

The Bucks played terrible defense—especially in the lane—but the Knicks weren’t so stalwart, either. They let Taurean Prince, Ryan Rollins, and Gary Trent, Jr. reduce the differential to 11. A Robinson put-back and an OG Anunoby steal helped stem the tide, but a Rollins triple at the buzzer made the halftime score 60-49.

Overall, the Knicks had shot 51% from the field and 39% from deep, while the Bucks had hit 58% and 46%. Winning the glass 21-15 and committing eight steals was the difference for our heroes. Bridges led all scorers, and Robinson had 10 rebounds in 15 minutes. Kolek had the highest net rating of all with a +13. For the Bucks, Giannis had scored 13 and Kuzma had made half his shots for 11 points.

Second Half

The Knicks opened the second half with Mikal Bridges knocking down another midrange jumper, but the offense quickly stalled. Both teams traded missed threes and tough rebounds, with Anunoby, Wright, and Hart all blanking from deep. Towns struggled inside, getting blocked twice by Brook Lopez, while Giannis led a rally. By midway through the quarter, the Deer had narrowed the gap to two points.

From there, New York increased their effort, with Hart and Towns crashing the glass and helping their club restore a 10-point lead. Meanwhile, Giannis picked up his fifth foul and despite scores from A.J. Green and Kuzma, New York was up 81-73 heading into the fourth.

New York had shot 7-of-19 in the first half, but their accuracy tanked in the second. They missed nine triples before OG connected at the start of the final frame. Then Landry Shamet rang home two, capping his best offensive performance in a while and goosing New York’s lead to 16.

Kolek returned to show off his excellent court vision—and take it to Giannis with confidence:

Giannis kept competing and Gary Trent, Jr. hit a couple of treys off the bench to make it interesting, but Anunoby, Towns, Hart, and Bridges combined to lock the game down and secured a 12-point lead with just under two minutes left.

Up Next

New York hosts the Trail Blazers on Sunday. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.

Box Score