Not Cool! Knicks Drop Key Matchup in Miami
The New York Knicks picked a bad time to get cold, even if they weren't playing Miami Heat.
Behind a clutch showcase from Jimmy Butler, the hosting Heat earned a crucial victory over the Knicks, keeping their hopes for inclusion among the Eastern Conference's six automatic playoff teams alive with a 127-120 victory. Butler put in 35 points, his first 30-point effort since Feb. 4 en route to the win.
Back in action after Monday's heartbreaking defeat to Minnesota in Manhattan, the Knicks (42-32) endured a brutal shooting night from Julius Randle in the immediate aftermath of his career night (15 points on 7-of-16 shooting, 1-of-5 from three-point range) though he did serve as a strong facilitator to the tune of nine assists. Wasted in the effort were sterling scoring efforts from RJ Barrett (26), Jalen Brunson (25), and Quentin Grimes (22), who united to shoot 28-of-41 from the field. Grimes did his business from deep, shooting 6-of-10 with the extra point.
Neither team led by more than nine in the first half and the Knicks were able to slice that Miami lead (built by Butler and Gabe Vincent scoring nearly half of the Heat's points with a combined 31 on 11-of-17) to one possession with an 11-4 run going to into the halftime break (Barrett accounting for six of those points). The Heat upped the lead to double-figures in the third thanks to a Butler three-point play that stemmed from a Randle technical foul, the Knicks bridged the latter frames with a 21-9 advantage that gave them their first lead of the second half ... one that proved all too fleeting.
Miami used the deep ball to secure its victorious faith, as an onslaught of triples led by Tyler Herro and Max Strus (6-of-7 combined over the last dozen) spelled the Knicks' doom. For the second straight game, defensive lapses eroded some strong offense: the Knicks shot 71 percent in the fourth quarter (with Barrett putting in 14 points of his own) but they let up at least 30 points in all but one period.
With the win, Miami (40-34) moved into a tie for the fateful sixth spot with idle Brooklyn, though the Nets have two games in hand. The Heat are now two games behind the fifth-place Knicks, who will host a rematch at Madison Square Garden in seven days. New York also missed out on a chance to secure the potentially crucial head-to-head tiebreaker with their loss, their fifth in the last eight.
On the other side, the win proved historic for Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra became the fourth head to coach to win at least 700 games with one NBA team, joining Gregg Popovich (San Antonio), Jerry Sloan (Utah), and Red Auerbach (Boston).
There's no time to grieve, however, as the Knicks will cap off a speedy road trip through Florida on Wednesday night when they face the Orlando Magic (7 p.m. ET, MSG/NBA TV).
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
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