 The Knicks didn't leave the Warriors much room to maneuver. Rocky Widner NBAE/Getty Images 56k | 300k |
New York had lost its first six games away from Madison Square Garden, matching its worst start since 1985. The Knicks last won a regular-season road game April 1, 2001, when they defeated the Los Angeles Lakers.
"For us we're just glad to get a road win," Sprewell said. "It wasn't like we were trying to get back at those guys for what they did (in New York). They played a great game up at our place and we didn't make shots and we didn't defend the way we're capable of so we just want to start playing basketball the way we're capable of doing."
A former Warrior, Sprewell shot 11-of-18 in 29 minutes. The All-Star swingman scored 10 points in the first quarter as the Knicks raced to a 30-18 lead. He had 19 points at halftime.
"I was probably due for a great game against this team," Sprewell said. "I haven't particularly shot the ball well against them. It was one of those nights where I did. There wasn't any added fire coming back here, none of that. Over the last few games, I've been in something of a rhythm and hopefully I can continue that."
Matched up against Warriors rookie Jason Richardson, Sprewell dominated on both ends of the court. From the 3-point line, he shot well all night and was 3-of-5 as the Knicks were 5-of-10 from beyond the arc.
On defense, he limited the first-round pick from Michigan State to eight points on 4-of-13 shooting.
"Latrell has been really on since the Portland game," Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "Defensively he has been on top of it. I am always happy when he play tough defense. Latrell was inspiring on defense. He has been outstanding defensively despite losing those two road games.
"I thought we were going to play with a lot of heart tonight. But I didn't think that we were going to play that well."
Five players finished in double figures as the Knicks shot 50 percent (37-of-73) from the floor. It was the first time this season they shot 50 percent.
"We just don't know what to expect," said New York guard Allan Houston, who added 13 points. "Honestly, we have to go out and put it on the line. That is what we did. It was a matter of everybody putting it together and putting it on the line. I think we did that tonight, but concentrated more on details. We paid special attention to details tonight and that made a difference tonight."
The Warriors made 2-of-19 shots and scored seven points in the second quarter, falling behind 55-25 at halftime.
"We got our (butts) whooped, every aspect of the game we got our (butts) whooped," Warriors forward Antawn Jamison said. "You're in the NBA -- you've got to be ready to bring it every night. It wasn't the turnovers, missed free throws, it wasn't this or that. It was an old fashioned (butt) whooping tonight. That's exactly what happened.
"It was a disgrace to be a part of it. They're paying us a lot of money to come out and play ball and we got manhandled. It was like a grown man playing a two-year-old child and that's exactly what happened."
Golden State's 25 first-half points equals the franchise low for points in a half. The Warriors had a 25-point first half on January 1, 1974 against Chicago and a 25-point second half on February 14, 1978 against Boston.
Jamison scored 12 points for Golden State, which shot just 31 percent (26-of-83) overall and lost its sixth consecutive home game to New York.
Despite the defeat, Golden State (6-6) is off to its best start since 1994-95 when the club was 7-5 after 12 games.