Kristaps Porzingis reached his career high with 17 points in the first half tonight. From then on, the Garden crowd grew louder and louder, more and more excited about their prized rookie, who would finish with 29 points and 11 rebounds in a 102-94 Knicks victory.
New York improved to 6-6 on the season, reaching .500 at the latest point in a season since its playoff campaign in 2012-13. Porzingis led the way, but great ball movement and a barrage of second half 3-pointers helped the home team delight its fans with a second straight victory.
The turning point came with just under five minutes left in the third quarter, when Carmelo Anthony and Porzingis buried back-to-back 3s to put the Knicks ahead by three. Anthony had deferred to his teammates early and would finish with five assists, but the Knicks’ star began to pecolate, scoring 13 of his 18 points in the second half.
He also tied Porzingis with a team-high 11 boards and was one of four Knicks with mutliple 3-pointers, led by Langston Galloway’s three. For the game, New York had 22 assists to Charlotte’s 13.
By the end of the night, the crowd was chanting Porzingis’ name — and even “M-V-P” — as the youngster pulled down a game-clinching rebound in the final minute and calmly stepped to the free throw line to ice the win.
