The New York Knicks rebounded from a horrendous effort in Dallas by knocking off the shorthanded Charlotte Hornets, a squad that has now lost four straight games.
Nov. 29, 2024: Final
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The 99-98 final doesn’t even begin to describe how gritty this game ultimately turned out to be for the road team. Yet again, Tom Thibodeau’s team suffered from a familiar slow start, particularly from an energy and defensive angle.
However, the squad’s captain, Jalen Brunson, helped turn things around in the second quarter with a spotless 3-3 mark from downtown, giving the Knicks a lead late in the first half.
Despite fumbling away that lead before halftime, New York hung around for most of the second half and somehow found the legs to finish the LaMelo Ball-less Hornets off at the end.
Brunson, 28, finished with a team-high 31 points on 9 of 18 shooting, including 4 of 6 from downtown and 9 of 12 from the charity stripe.
Karl-Anthony Towns felt incredible frustration for most of the game, part of which dealt with offensive (hooking) fouls. Still, the Knicks center chipped in with a workmanlike 19 points on 8 of 16 from the floor.
Turnovers destroyed the Knicks, as 21 giveaways led to 31 Charlotte points. Mikal Bridges’s noticeable gaff at the end of the first half put the Hornets up three points heading into halftime (video further below).
Nonetheless, Josh Hart led the energy charge in the second quarter and again in the fourth quarter, helping to provide the spark the Knicks have sought for some time. Cameron Payne and Miles McBride also did major work in this regard.
In fact, one of the key moments of the game was a McBride loose-ball pickup that he took all the way to the other end for a clean flush.
For Charlotte, Brandon Miller picked up the slack for his shorthanded squad by pouring in 20 points. The problem was his efficiency, as 7 of 25 from the floor and 2-11 from three doesn’t exactly help matters.
The New York Knicks finish their five-game road trip 3-2, improve to 11-8 overall, and are now a perfect 3-0 in NBA Cup play. Next up is the Orlando Magic at Madison Square Garden, the team’s first home game since they beat the Washington Wizards on Nov. 18.
Quarter 2
New York did not go on a run until the Knicks bench got involved. Miles McBride hit a three-pointer and collected five points in the first half.
More importantly, Jalen Brunson got his offensive game going a bit. After a rough outing in Dallas—his former city—Brunson drilled three threes on three attempts while finishing with a team-high 14 points in the first half.
Unfortunately, after seemingly finding their legs, things went awry to end the first half.
After taking a 46-45 on Brunson’s third three-pointer, the Knicks gave it right back in the final seconds. Josh Green drilled a 9-footer, but an errant Mikal Bridges in-bound pass gifted Seth Curry another field goal, which put Charlotte up 49-46 at halftime.
Quarter 1
Yet again, Tom Thibodeau’s team came out flat. Even without LaMelo Ball, the Hornets seemingly possessed more energy than the road team.
Charlotte overplayed the Knicks defensively, and Thibodeau’s defense continued to showcase subpar effort and/or energy.
New York found itself trailing 23-15 after the first quarter.
Box score, stats
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NY | 15 | 31 | 25 | 28 | 99 |
| CHA | 23 | 26 | 23 | 26 | 98 |
| Team Stats | Knicks | Hornets | |||
| FG | 36-81 | 36-89 | |||
| Field Goal % | 44.4 | 40.4 | |||
| 3PT | 12-32 | 15-47 | |||
| Three Point % | 37.5 | 31.9 | |||
| FT | 15-19 | 11-15 | |||
| Free Throw % | 78.9 | 73.3 | |||
| Rebounds | 44 | 39 | |||
| Offensive Rebounds | 12 | 14 | |||
| Defensive Rebounds | 32 | 25 | |||
| Assists | 20 | 25 | |||
| Steals | 7 | 8 | |||
| Blocks | 5 | 6 | |||
| Total Turnovers | 21 | 15 | |||
| Points Conceded Off Turnovers | 31 | 21 | |||
| Fast Break Points | 9 | 7 | |||
| Points in Paint | 44 | 28 | |||
| Fouls | 19 | 19 | |||
| Technical Fouls | 0 | 1 | |||
| Flagrant Fouls | 0 | 1 | |||
| Largest Lead | 6 | 10 |
Pregame details: Schedule, TV, injuries
- New York Knicks (10-8)
- Charlotte Hornets (6-12)
- NBA, Nov. 29, 2024, 12:00 p.m. ET
- Spectrum Center, Charlotte, NC
- NBA Cup Game (Knicks: 2-0, Hornets: 0-2)
Depending on how the Hornets game ends, the Knicks will finish their five-game road trip 3-2 or 2-3. Still holding down second place in the Atlantic Division, the Brooklyn Nets are now just 1.5 games behind.
Hornets star guard LaMelo Ball will not be in the lineup against New York. Head coach Charles Lee told the media that Ball injured himself on the last play of the previous game.
Ball is currently averaging an outstanding 31.1 points and 6.9 assists per game (through 18 games this season).
The game is slated for 12:00 p.m. ET and can be viewed on MSG Networks.
