The New York Knicks found the perfect solution to their woes on the road: going home.
Manhattan once again reigns in the NBA’s metropolitan melee, as the Knicks busted the Brooklyn Nets by a 113-100 final on Monday night at Barclays Center.
Karl-Anthony Towns led the way with one of his best nights of the season to the tune of a 37-point,12-rebound double-double, picking his shots well with a 14-of-20 mark from the field, including 3-of-4 from three. Jalen Brunson added 27 more while Josh Hart pulled in 12 rebounds to match Towns in his first start of the season.
With the win, the Knicks have now won each of their last dozen against the Nets, setting a new record streak in the long-running local rivalry.
Something had to give on Monday night, as the Knicks (10-6) entered with but one road win while the Nets were still searching for their first win on Atlantic Avenue. Fresh off an inspiring brief road trip (defeating Boston before a respectable effort in Toronto), the Nets didn’t make it easy, but the Knicks wore them down well enough to go up 2-0 in the annual quartet.
Enduring de facto bullying on Saturday in Orlando, the Knicks controlled most of the physical aspects of Monday’s game. They outscored the Nets in the paint by a 52-28 tally while losing only six turnovers. Hart lived up to his hustling reputation while stepping into the opening five in place of the ill Mitchell Robinson.
Despite eternally trailing from the early second quarter onward, Brooklyn kept things close by more than doubling the Knicks in three-point attempts in the first three periods, but New York pulled away with a scorching success rate of 53% in the second half, which they won by 10.
Still winless at home, the reeling Nets (3-14) were led by a career-best 31 points from Noah Clowney, who earned most of that output on seven three-pointers. Part three of this crosstown series will be staged in January at Madison Square Garden.
In the meantime, the Knicks will look to create a road winning streak on Wednesday night for a pre-Thanksgiving showdown with the Charlotte Hornets on the road (7 p.m. ET, MSG). It’ll be the penultimate portion of the Knicks’ NBA Cup group play slate before it wraps on Friday at home against Milwaukee.
