The Los Angeles Lakers beat one of the hottest teams in the NBA, the Knicks, 113-105 Saturday night, ending New York’s nine-game winning streak. The Knicks would take on the Lakers in Madison Square Garden without three-time NBA All-star Julius Randle and recent trade acquisition OG Anunoby, both out due to injury.
LeBron and Lakers Back in the Garden
The Lakers and Knicks were tied at 59 going into the half, with D’Angelo Russell having 14 points and three assists while LeBron James added 12 points. Anthony Davis was dominant in the first half and had a near Double-Double with eight points and an impressive 11 rebounds. Other than Anthony Davis, only the Knicks were battling on the glass, grabbing ten offensive rebounds and 30 rebounds overall in the first half of the game.
THIS PASS FROM AUSTIN REAVES 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/ZRxTeErjCB
— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) February 4, 2024
Taurean Prince, who had started every game on the season for a career-high 30 minutes per game, came off the bench for the first time. Prince still played more minutes than Rui Hachimura in the first half and would end the game playing 33 minutes compared to Rui’s 19 minutes despite being switched into the starting role before the game. Taurean Prince was being used as the Laker’s main perimeter defender against recent first-time All-Star Jalen Brunson but couldn’t keep Brunson in front of him. Brunson had 17 points, absolutely torching the Lakers in the first half. Brunson would expose this matchup more late in the third, almost toying with Prince on the perimeter. Brunson used a nifty fake half-spin crossover to shake Prince before getting him to jump on a fake stepback at the elbow for an up-and-under floater.
Lakers Dominate Defensively in Fourth Quarter
⏯️ Blocked by AD (2x) pic.twitter.com/hAZUWo62Go
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) February 4, 2024
To end the third quarter, Anthony Davis had back-to-back blocks on Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson, who both finished with double-doubles on the night. Jalen Brunson had a game-high 36 points with ten assists and six rebounds on the night. Former Los Angeles Laker Josh Hart put up 12 points and 11 rebounds. Donte DiVincenzo had a big night for the Knicks, coming out hot in the third, scoring 10 points to start the first 6 minutes of the second half.
Fourth quarter in NYC 🔒 pic.twitter.com/uC4kBDRsug
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) February 4, 2024
The Los Angeles Lakers team would come out with a newfound defensive intensity after the Davis blocks and dominate the fourth quarter. In the fourth, Donte DiVincenzo would put the New York Knicks up 96-94 on the Lakers after a 3-pointer with 7:25 remaining. From that point, the Knicks went scoreless until Donte DiVincenzo ended the scoring slump by hitting a two-point jumper with 40 seconds left in the game before fouling out. DiVincenzo had 26 points with six rebounds and one block on LeBron James and shot six for 16 from the three-point line. In the seven minutes, the Lakers would go on an 11-0 run sparked by a three from Taurean Prince. Taurean Prince finished the game with 16 points on the night on six for ten shooting and three for six from deep. Though Rui Hachimura got the start for Taurean Prince, it only resulted in a seven-point effort with four rebounds. Austin Reaves had another excellent game, after a career high 32 points in a win over Boston, with 22 points, six rebounds, seven assists, and two blocks while shooting an efficient six for thirteen from the field and 50% from three next to backcourt mate D’Angelo Russell with 16 points in the road win.
Man in the arena. pic.twitter.com/WUtAE4NZzw
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) February 4, 2024
LeBron drove on Precious Achiuwa and hit his signature short corner fade to put the Lakers’ lead up to 9 points with under 2 minutes left in the game. Anthony Davis had a masterful defensive performance, finishing with 12 points, 18 rebounds, five assists, four blocks, and a steal. Though Davis had no shot attempts in the fourth besides a deep three to avoid a shot clock violation, he secured the victory for the Lakers, making four free throws in the final. LeBron James would improve his own personal record to 23-9 at Madison Square Garden with 24 points, five assists, and rebounds each while adding two steals and one block on defense. When speaking with Lisa Salters after the game playing the Charlotte Hornets on Monday, LeBron said, “We still have one more game left on this road trip after back-to-back great wins in Boston and here, two of the hottest teams in the league. Finish it off in Charlotte. We have to be professional and understand that that is an NBA team, and if we don’t come to play, they will beat us.”
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