The Empire Strikes Back

The Knicks went across the Brooklyn Bridge tonight, to take on their the crosstown rival Brooklyn Nets. This was the second matchup between the two teams this season. The last time these two teams met, the Knicks ran out of gas in OT, while the Nets cruised to a 98-86 victory. Last time the Knicks were shorthanded not having Jason Kidd. This time the Nets were the ones shorthanded without Brook Lopez. The Knicks got off to a terrible start. Every shot was a brick, and defense was playing poorly. The Nets got off to a great start, and at one point led the game 21-7. It looked like it was going to be all Brooklyn again at the Barclays Center. After the first quarter, the Nets were up by 14 leading 30-16. Then, the Knicks, defending the empire known as New York City, began to fight back.

Carmelo Anthony led the Knicks in the second quarter to get back into the fight. He closed the first half with 22 points and the Knicks were down by 4, trailing 53-49. For the rest of the game, the lead went back and forth. The Nets began to pull away, and the Knicks did their best to keep the Nets from going past 10 points. The game was tied at 97 with the clock ticking away it's final seconds. Jason Kidd, the former Nets star, sank a go ahead 3 pointer with 24 seconds left, and had a chance to make its four point game after he was fouled. He missed, but the Nets could not match it in the final seconds and the Knicks got their revenge with a 100-97 victory over the Brooklyn Nets. After the first quarter, the Knicks out scored the Nets 84-67. Carmelo Anthony, who lit up the Barclays Center, dropped 45 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. Jason Kidd, the game hero, had 18 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists. off the bench, JR Smith led the way with 16 points, 4 rebounds, and an assist. On the other side of the Brooklyn Bridge, Deron Williams and Joe Johnson had 18 and 16 points respectively. The lead scorer for Brooklyn was Andray Blatche who had 23 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals.
The Knicks victory even the season series against Brooklyn, and extends their record to 16-5 on the season. The next time these two team play it will in the worlds most famous arena, Madison Square Garden.

Keep Calm and Carry On

The way the last two victories came about seem to be a bit topsy turvy. A 2 point victory against Charlotte, and a 20 point victory against Miami. The Knicks had to go the distance with the Charlotte Bobcats, but thanks to good ol' JR Smith's buzzer beater fadeaway, the Knicks were able to walk out of Charlotte with a win. Carmelo had 23 points against the Bobcats, but began losing his touch in the second half. After Carmelo hurt his left hand in the second half, he sat out the rest of the game, leaving it up to the rest of the team to come through. Tyson Chandler once again did his part, with 18 points and 17 rebounds. Raymond Felton also pitched in with 17 points. Charlotte's Kemba Walker had 25 points The hero on Wednesday night was JR Smith. Smith once again proved the the Knicks can put up a fight when the stars are cold or hurt. He only had 13 points, but made a key steal that gave the Knicks a second chance after Felton missed a go ahead free throw. Smith off the inbound, drove in and hit a 18 ft fadeaway to seal the deal against Charlotte. As great of a victory it was, it came with the price of having Carmelo Anthony having to sit out Thursday night against, the Miami Heat.

It was the New York Knicks going up against the defending champion Miami Heat in South Beach. Carmelo was in a suit, due to his injured finger. The Knicks proved they could run without their star player, matching Miami basket by basket. Toward the end of the first half, Miami looked to pull away leading by 8, but great defense, ball movement, and finding Steve Novak wide open for two key three pointers the Knicks managed to tie the game at 50. Both teams were tied at 53 at the beginning of halftime. The Knicks came out with fire. They continued where they left off at the end of the first half and went 5 for 7 from three point range. The Miami fans blinked, and the Knicks were up by 9. The three point line had the Knicks feeling like kids in a candy store. It was eight threes in eight minutes, or how Knick fans put it......beautiful. The Knicks had the lead the rest of the game, despite Miami trying to fight back. for the second time this season, the Knicks defeated the Miami Heat, and once again, beat the defending champs by 20. Without Carmelo Anthony, this proved to be a huge win for the Knickerbockers. Raymond Felton had a career high 27 points, and also recorded 7 assists and a pair of steals. Tyson Chandler and JR Smith both had 13 points, and Chandler led the team with 9 rebounds. Steve Novak, who was one of the five players that helped reign threes in South Beach, had 18 points. On the other side of the floor, LeBron James played like LeBron James, putting up 31 points,10 rebounds, 9 assists, and 3 steals. The Knicks limited Dwayne Wade to 13 points, Chris Bosh to 12, and offseason pickup Ray Allen with 9. These were two good victories for the Knicks. They showed they can still get the job done without their superstars. So if your a Knicks fan, keep calm and carry on.