The New York Knicks capped off a successful road trip with a hard-fought 114-109 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night. Led by Julius Randle’s 31 points and Immanuel Quickley’s clutch shooting, the Knicks overcame a triple-double from LeBron James to spoil the Lakers’ banner ceremony on a night when they raised their 2022 NBA championship banner.
Game Flow: Back-and-Forth Battle Goes Down to the Wire
In a game that featured 16 lead changes and 13 ties, neither team led by double digits at any point. The Knicks held a slim 55-52 lead at halftime after a tightly contested first half.
The Lakers came out strong after halftime, using an early 8-0 run to go up 68-63. But the Knicks responded with their own spurt, keyed by back-to-back threes from Immanuel Quickley. Still, Los Angeles clung to a narrow 87-86 edge heading to the fourth.
The final period played out as a neck-and-neck slugfest. Anthony Davis was the go-to option for the Lakers, scoring 12 points in the quarter. But clutch buckets from Jalen Brunson and Quickley kept New York within striking distance.
Two Randle free throws put the Knicks up 106-105 with 3:30 left. Los Angeles briefly regained the lead before Quentin Grimes nailed a corner three for a 111-109 New York advantage with 1:39 on the clock. The Lakers had their chances down the stretch but came up empty on multiple trips as the Knicks did just enough to hang on.
Score by Quarters
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knicks | 24 | 31 | 31 | 28 | 114 |
| Lakers | 19 | 33 | 35 | 22 | 109 |
Randle, Quickley Lead Knicks Past Lakers
Julius Randle was determined not to let his team lose, taking matters into his own hands down the stretch. Randle scored 11 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter, repeatedly bulling his way inside to earn trips to the foul line.
Immanuel Quickley provided a huge boost off the bench with 21 points on five made threes. Eight of those points came in the final 2:30 as he nailed a series of clutch jumpers with the outcome hanging in the balance.
Jalen Brunson added 21 points and 7 assists as New York’s perimeter trio did the heavy lifting. RJ Barrett chipped in with 15 points while center Isaiah Hartenstein pulled down a career-high 17 rebounds.
For Los Angeles, Anthony Davis scored 27 points but faded late. LeBron James notched his third straight triple-double (14 points, 16 assists, 11 rebounds) but shot just 5-15 from the field. No other Laker scored more than 12 points on a night when the team’s role players came up small.
What This Means for Both Teams
With the win, New York concluded its road trip with a solid 3-2 record and improved to 18-13 on the year. After some early season struggles led to speculation about coach Tom Thibodeau’s job security, the Knicks appear to have righted the ship. This gutsy win should only build confidence as a young team tries to take the next step.
For the Lakers, this loss epitomizes their up-and-down season thus far. At 15-16, Los Angeles sits in 12th place out West as it tries to overcome both injuries and inconsistent play. LeBron and company hoped this banner night would provide momentum to string some wins together, but instead they suffered another frustrating defeat.
This was a golden opportunity squandered for the Lakers. They failed to take advantage of New York being on the road for the fifth straight game, along with Davis and James combining for 52 points. If they couldn’t beat the middling Knicks at home under those circumstances, serious doubts linger about whether this Laker squad has enough to make real noise come playoff time.
What’s Next
The Knicks will return home for three straight games at Madison Square Garden beginning Wednesday against the Spurs. They’ll be looking to keep things rolling after this eventful road swing.
Meanwhile, the Lakers have little time to sulk about this loss with the NBA-leading Boston Celtics visiting Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday. Facing one of the league’s elite teams on short rest will be a major test of both body and spirit for LeBron James and company after letting one slip away against New York.
In the bigger picture, Los Angeles needs to string together some wins both to climb the West standings and rebuild belief that they can challenge the conference’s top contenders. More performances like Monday where they fail to get over the hump despite 40+ combined points from James and Davis will only lead to more frustration.
For the scrappy young Knicks, they should feel good about battling through adversity to knock off LA on its home floor. With continued improvement from key pieces like RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley, New York looks well on its way to getting back to the playoffs after a down 2021-22 season.
This game was a rollercoaster ride featuring a little bit of everything: highlight plays, physical defense, emotional swings, controversial calls, and stars trading big shots down the stretch. In the end, New York’s youth and energy enabled them to outlast an LA team still trying to find its groove.
Though they fell short, give the Lakers credit for making the Knicks earn every last point. But this loss underscores the need for the Purple and Gold to discover more consistency if they hope to be more than a fringe playoff contender out West this year.
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