Post Game Report presented by Major Energy

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Michael Beasley opened up the scoring with two baskets on the first two possessions of the game and set the tone early. As a team, both the Knicks and Cavs struggled from the field in the first quarter and finished all tied-up at 20 after the first 12 minutes. The squad came out firing in the second quarter, led by Beasley and Luke Kornet, who scored 18 of the team’s 34 points during the period. A thunderous two-handed jam by Frank Ntilikina put the away squad up 18 with just over two minutes remaining in the half, and the Knicks took a 20-point lead into the locker room. Rookie Isaiah Hicks made an instant impact on the floor, finishing a +25 in the first half. With Lebron James sitting out the entire second half, the Cavs managed to cut the Knicks lead to 10 less than 5 minutes into the third. The Knicks were able to extend the lead back up to 16 with contributions from Trey Burke, Damyean Dotson, and Luke Kornet. Cleveland remained resilient and cut the lead to single digits with under 10 minutes to go, but the Knicks did not back down in the closing moments and won by a final score of 110-96.

Knick of the Night: Two-way player Luke Kornet scored a career-high 23 points on an extremely efficient 9-14 FG in the final game of his rookie campaign.

Notables: Isaiah Hicks was a team high +23 and finished with a career-high 15 points, four assists and three rebounds. Trey Burke poured in 19, dished out nine assists and grabbed five boards. Frank Ntilikina was one point off tying his career-high, which he set last night, scoring 16 points. Damyeon Dotson finished with 11 points.

Statistically Speaking: New York’s rookies combined for 65 points and all four scored in double figures for the first time this season.

Looking Ahead: New York closes out the season with a 29-53 record, finishing 11th in the Eastern Conference, and 9th in the standings for the Draft Lottery. The Lottery will be held on May 15 in Chicago for the first-time ever.

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Knicks Close 2017-18 Campaign with Win Over Cavs

Charlie Widdoes

How it Happened: Coming off a historic three-game stretch, Kyle O’Quinn opened the game with a ferocious one-handed jam over Lebron James on the first possession of the game. Frank Ntilikina, who received praise from James prior to tonight’s game, started strong in the first quarter, finishing with 10 of the Knicks 25 points in the period. Cleveland created separation in the second quarter behind 39 first half points by James, JR Smith, and Kevin Love, closing out the quarter with a 61-49 lead. Lance Thomas scored seven points in a two-minute period to open the third, but the Cavs kept a double-digit lead behind strong play from Love. The Knicks continued to shoot well into the 3rd quarter, making 10 of 13 shots to cut the Cavs lead to five. Cleveland’s second unit built the lead back up to 15, but the Knicks remained persistent. Damyean Dotson hit a three-pointer to cut the deficit to five with just over eight minutes remaining. New York was unable to erase the deficit from there, with the Cavs winning by a final margin of 123-109.

Knick of the Night: Frank Ntilikina scored a career-high 17 points while adding six rebounds and five assists.

Notables: Lance Thomas scored a season-high 14 points and added seven rebounds. Michael Beasley scored 20 points on 8-13 FG. Courtney Lee had 17 points and six rebounds off the bench. Trey Burke dished out eight assists and scored 12 points of his own.

Statistically Speaking: The Knicks shot 52% from the floor, compared to only 46% for Cleveland. However, the Cavs made 19 triples on 42% shooting compared to New York’s ten.

Looking Ahead: The Knicks will play their final game of the season Wednesday night in Cleveland. Catch all of the action on MSG Network starting at 8:00pm.

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Knicks Fall to Cavs on the final night at The Garden

In his fifth game as a starter with the Knicks, Trey Burke set the tone early, scoring 12 first quarter points on 5/6 from the floor to help the home team take a 34-23 lead heading into the second quarter. The Knicks continued to fill it up, with back-to-back three pointers from Kyle O’Quinn and Damyeon Dotson that extended New York’s lead to 55-34 with just over four minutes left in the first half. The Heat were able to string together a few stops near the end of the quarter and trimmed their deficit to 12 points heading into the locker room. Tim Hardaway Jr. and Frank Ntilikina combined to make three three-pointers at the start of the third quarter to stretch the lead to 21 points. The Knicks continued to shoot the lights out throughout the fourth quarter, highlighted by rookies DamyeanDotson and Luke Kornet, and won by a final score of 122-98.

Knick of the Night: Damyeon Dotson set career-high in both points and rebounds with 30 and 11, giving him his first career double-double.

Notables: Kyle O’Quinn finished with 14 points and 14 rebounds and shot an efficient 5-9 from the floor. Rookie Luke Kornet finished one-point off of his career-high, putting in 17 points and pulling down eight boards. Tim Hardaway Jr. was hot from downtown, knocking down 57% of his three-pointers on his way to scoring 15 points. Trey Burke finished with 17 points and has scored 15+ points in all five games as a starter.

Statistically Speaking: New York knocked down a season-best 18 three pointers at a 49% clip.

Looking Ahead: The Knicks will look to win back-to-back games tomorrow against the Bucks at The Garden. Catch all of the action on MSG Network at 7:30p ET.

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Knicks Catch Fire from Three to Down Heat

How it Happened: Knicks starters Tim Hardaway Jr. and Kyle O’Quinn set the tone early on, combining to score the first 14 points for the orange and blue. The Magic stayed on pace with the Knicks thanks to strong play from Jamel Artis, as the two teams went back throughout the half. Hardaway Jr., O’Quinn, and Burke combined for 31 points in the first half and New York took a 46-45 lead into the locker room. Mario Hezonja and Artis caught fire in the third, leading the Magic to a seven point lead entering the fourth. Strong defense from Orlando held the Knicks to a season-low 73 points and winning by a final score of 97-73.

Knick of the Night: Kyle O’Quinn shined tonight as a starter, putting in 13 points, pulling down 12 boards, and swatting away 5 shots.

Notables: Trey Burke continues to play efficiently, scoring 15 on 7-13 FG. Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 16 and grabbed eight rebounds. Courtney Lee scored 13 points off the bench.

Statistically Speaking: The Knicks scored a season-low 28 points in the second half, while the Magic scored 52. Additionally, the Knicks missed 23 of 27 three-point attempts.

Looking Ahead: The Miami Heat travel to New York for a match up with the Knicks on Friday night. Catch all of the action on MSG Network starting at 7:30.

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Knicks Falter in Second Half vs Magic

With Enes Kanter, Courtney Lee, and Frank Ntilikina out, the shorthanded Knicks came out battling against the Pistons. Tim Hardaway Jr. led the way in the first quarter with 8 points, as the Knicks shot 57% from the 3-point stripe. Anthony Tolliver contributed 8 points of his own to lead the opposing team to a 30-27 lead at the end of the first. The duo of Trey Burke and Michael Beasley came out firing in the second quarter, with Beasley dropping 8 points and Trey Burke finishing with 7 points and 7 assists. However, the Pistons kept the pace with 11 points from Reggie Jackson and 8 points &amp; 9 rebounds from their anchor Andre Drummond, closing out the half with a 56-54 lead. Beasley continued his hot shooting into the 3rd quarter, tallying 19 points, with Burke securing a double-double to the tune of 13 points and 11 assists. At the end of the 3rd, all five Pistons starters were in double-digit scoring. It was the Michael Beasley show in the 4th quarter, as he matched his season-high of 32 points, including 20 in the second half. Despite the valiant effort, Detroit’s starting five and their spread attack proved to be too much in the closing moments, as the Pistons secured the victory with a final score of 115-109, led by Andre Drummond’s monster double-double of 22 &amp; 17.

Knick of the Night:Michael Beasley tied his season-high of 32 points, shooting 66% from the field with three 3’s, 4 rebounds and 3 assists. It’s his 3rd straight game of 20+ points.

Notables:The Michigan duo of Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr. both finished with 18 points. Trey Burke set a Knick season-high with 15 assists, along with 5 rebounds. Kyle O’Quinn returned from injury to finish with 8 points and 15 rebounds.

Statistically Speaking:Burke is the second Knick since 2000 to record at least 18 points, 15 assists, and 5 rebounds in a game. Nate Robinson is the other with 33 points, 15 assists, 9 rebounds on February 9, 2009.

Looking Ahead:The Knicks continue their home stand on Tuesday in the final meeting vs. the Orlando Magic. Catch all of the action on MSG Network beginning at 7:30.

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Beasley Ties Season-High 32 points as Knicks Fall to Pistons.

Jonah Ballow

How it Happened:Trey Burke came in right where he left off after scoring 42 points on Monday night, putting in four points in the opening three minutes against the Sixers. The Knicks as a team were a step slow defensively in the first quarter, which allowed Philly to shoot 61% from the floor and take a 37-28 lead at the end of the mark. Number one overall pick Markelle Fultz gave Philadelphia a spark off the bench in the second quarter, but the gutsy play of Enes Kanter, who was hampered with a back injury, allowed the Knicks to keep it close with a halftime score of 67-63. Kanter tallied 16 points and 8 rebounds in the first half, matched up mostly against Joel Embiid, who left the game with a face contusion. The Sixers started to pull away in the third quarter behind strong play from Richaun Holmes and took a 93-80 lead into the final period. New York was unable to claw their way back into the game and Philly won by a final score of 118-101. The Sixers are now 19-1 in their last 20 home games.

Knick of the Night:Emmanuel Mudiay led the Knicks off the bench with 22 points (8-15 FG) in 25 minutes.

Notables:Trey Burke scored 18 points (7-15 FG) and 6 assists, giving him his fifth straight game with at least 15 points. Enes Kanter moved into 7th on the NBA’s double-double list with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Michael Beasley finished with 22 points.

Statistically Speaking:Philadelphia dished out 34 assists, compared to 20 for the Knicks.

Looking Ahead:The Knicks return to New York and will match up against Blake Griffin and the Detroit Pistons on Saturday evening. Catch all of the action on MSG Network beginning at 5:00.

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Mudiay Drops 22 as Knicks Fall to Sixers

How it Happened: Monday night was a battle between the young Knicks backcourt of Frank Ntilikina and Trey Burke against All-Star Kemba Walker. Ntilikina has become much more confident as the season has gone on, and was extremely aggressive in the first half attacking the basket and pressuring opponents on the defensive end. Ntilikina scored 12 points on 6-8 from the floor. Despite his strong half, Charlotte was able to hold the Knicks to 49 points and led by 13 at halftime. Burke had the hot hand out of the locker room in the third quarter, scoring six points in the first three minutes of the period. Michael Beasley followed Burke’s lead, and finished with 15 points in the third quarter, highlighted by four dunks, to pull the Knicks within five. Burke continued to fill it up and tied the game with nine minutes remaining after back-to-back baskets. A battle between Kemba Walker and Burke ensued in the closing minutes, and Walker gave the Hornets the lead with just over three minutes left in the ball game. The Knicks continued to fight and tied the game with just under two minutes left. Hardaway Jr. nailed a three pointer with 40 seconds left to give the Knicks a three-point lead, but Walker answered to send the game to overtime. Walker sealed the victory in extra time, scoring or assisting on 15 of the 16 Hornets 15 points, which allowed Charlotte to win with a final score of 137-128.

Knick of the Night: Trey Burke put in a career-high, and Knicks season-high, 42 points while making 61 percent of his shots. Additionally, In his second start with the Knicks, Burke was an all-around floor general dishing out 12 assists while only turning the ball over twice.

Notables: Michael Beasley scored 27 points while shooting 55% from the floor. Enes Kanter had his 38th double-double of the season with 15 points and 13 rebounds. Tim Hardaway Jr. put in 17 points on only 12 shots.

Statistically Speaking: Trey Burke scored 35 points in the second half and overtime alone, the most points scored in one half by a Knick this season.

Looking Ahead: The Knicks close the road trip in Philadelphia against Joel Embiid and the Sixers. Catch all of the action on MSG Network starting at 7:00.

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Burke Scores Career-High 42, Dishes Out 12 Assists in OT Loss to Hornets

How it Happened: For the second game in a row, the Knicks’ backcourt of Trey Burke and Frank Ntilikina paced the team in the first half. The two combined for 16 points on 6-9 from the floor. New York was locked in on defense, holding the Wizards to 40% shooting in the first half, allowing the Knicks to take a 61-53 lead into the locker room. After leading by as many as 11 in the third quarter, Washington went on a 9-0 run to cut the Knicks lead to two. The squad held their own and led by six heading into the final period. The Knicks had the lead throughout the 4th until the Wizards tied it up with just over three minutes remaining. With 1:08 remaining in the game, the Wizards took their first lead of the second half. Trey Burke, however, delivered on a crucial and-1 layup with 35 seconds remaining, giving the Knicks the lead for good and sealing victory with a final score of 101-97.

Knick of the Night: Trey Burke scored 19 points on 8-15 from the field against his former squad in his first start of the season.

Notables: Emmanuel Mudiay had one of his best games as a Knick off the bench with 11 points, six rebounds and seven assists in only 21 minutes of action. Enes Kanter had yet another double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Troy Williams and Luke Kornet each scored 10 points in a combined 32 minutes off the bench.

Statistically Speaking: The Knicks had incredible balance on the offensive end, with eight players scoring in double-figures for the first time this season and 26 assists as a team.

Looking Ahead: The Knicks will seek back-to-back road wins tomorrow night in Charlotte against the Hornets. Catch all of the action on MSG Network starting at 7:30 pm.