Knicks Edge Sixers, 110-109

The New York Knicks defeated the Philadelphia 76ers, 110-109, at Madison Square
Garden on Saturday night. The Sixers (22-36) have shown drastic improvement this
season, often giving teams all they can handle even on nights when they come up
short. Their fighting spirit was on full display Saturday, as they came back
from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter to take a 109-108 lead with nine
seconds remaining on a Jahlil Okafor jumper. However, Carmelo Anthony wouldn’t
allow the struggling Knicks (24-35) to go down for the seventh time in the last
eight games, nailing a baseline jumper over Robert Covington with 0.3 seconds
left to seal the home win. New York prevailed despite being outrebounded 50-44,
a deficit they made up for by shooting a solid 47.2 percent success rate from
the floor. Okafor spearheaded the Sixers with 28 points, which he complemented
with 10 rebounds and one assist. Covington continued his torrid start to the
second half of the season, tallying a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double that
also included two assists, three steals and two blocks. Dario Saric turned in 19
points, 15 rebounds and five assists. Nik Stauskas led the bench with 14 points,
three boards and one block. Anthony posted a team-high 37 points, along with six
rebounds, two assists and one block. Derrick Rose managed 18 points, five boards
and three assists. Lance Thomas and Willy Hernangomez drew starts for Kristaps
Porzingis (ankle) and Joakim Noah (hamstring), respectively, and generated
matching 11-point efforts. Thomas also registered six boards and two assists,
while Hernangomez hauled in nine boards, dished out one assist and recorded a
pair of blocks. Justin Holiday paced the second unit with 14 points, seven
rebounds and two blocks, and Kyle O’Quinn, getting some extra run due to the
aforementioned frontcourt absences, supplied nine points, five rebounds, five
assists, five steals and two blocks. The Sixers head back home to tangle with
the Golden State Warriors on Monday night, while the Knicks remain home and
await the Toronto Raptors for a Monday night showdown.