The New York Knicks held off the Charlotte Hornets 102-94 on Tuesday, thanks to a dominant third quarter.
In a game where Charlotte was up by two at half, the Knicks put together a huge 34-point third quarter to eventually lock up the win. The Knicks dominated the rebounding margin in the first game between these two teams, but they dominated the shooting here. The Hornets actually outshot the Knicks from the field, but the Knicks shot 95 percent from the free-throw line and 50 percent from three-point range. The Hornets shot just 68 percent from the free-throw line and 25 percent from three-point range. New York also out-assisted Charlotte 22-13 and simply looked like the better team on Tuesday.
The Hornets prevailed in the first game between these two teams, but just didn’t play well enough to win on Tuesday. The Hornets were led by Kemba Walker, who continues to prove that Madison Square Garden is one of his favorite places to play. Walker tallied 31 points, four rebounds and three steals in the loss. After winning Player of the Week last week, Nicolas Batum started this week with a terrible game. Batum scored just four points on 1-for-9 shooting and provided just six rebounds and no other notable statistics, which is a bit strange for a player who regularly stuffs the stat sheet. The bench did play well for the Hornets though, as they had three players record at least 12 points and five rebounds in the defeat. Charlotte will look to bounce-back on Wednesday against the struggling Brooklyn Nets in the second half of a back-to-back for both teams.
The Knicks barely held off the Hornets on Tuesday, but their just happy to get the win. They were led by rookie Kristaps Porzingis, who tallied a career-high 29 points and 11 rebounds in the win. Skeptics who were calling this rookie a bust before he played a game are surely eating their words at this point. After being a terrible team last year, the Knicks have some fire this year and much of the success has to go to this talented rookie. New York was also led by another good performance from Carmelo Anthony, who collected 18 points, 11 rebounds and five assists in the victory. These two are the cornerstones for the franchise at this point and that has to make Knicks fans somewhat encouraged. The Knicks have a few days off until they play the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday in OKC in their next schedule game.
