James Harden Dominant as Nets Hold Off Julius Randle, Knicks for Narrow Win
James Harden had 34 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists as the Brooklyn Nets defeated the New York Knicks 112-110 in Barclays Center on Tuesday.
Kevin Durant scored 11 of his 27 points in the final six minutes of the game for the 15-6 Nets, who lead the Eastern Conference by 1.5 games over the second-place Chicago Bulls.
Julius Randle guided the 11-10 Knicks with 24 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. Derrick Rose had 16 points and nine dimes off the bench.
Knicks guard Evan Fournier's three-pointer tied the game at 110 with 17.7 seconds left.
New York then played good defense on Brooklyn's final possession, doubling Durant to get the ball out of his hands.
KD passed the ball to Nets forward James Johnson, who drove the lane and got fouled by Knicks center Mitchell Robinson with 2.2 seconds left.
Johnson nailed both free throws following the shooting foul, giving the Knicks one last chance from full court without any timeouts.
Rose unleashed an inbounds pass to Fournier, who got a good look from inside half court. However, the ball bounced off the back rim.
Alec Burks scored a team-high 25 points for the Knicks in his second straight start at point guard for the benched Kemba Walker.
Notable Performances
Nets G James Harden: 34 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals
Nets F Kevin Durant: 27 points, 9 assists, 5 rebounds
Nets F/C LaMarcus Aldridge: 8 points, 3 blocks
Knicks F Julius Randle: 24 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists
Knicks G Alec Burks: 25 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds
Knicks G Derrick Rose: 16 points, 9 assists
KD Takes Over Down Stretch
The Nets opened the third quarter with a 14-0 run to give themselves a 74-61 lead. It wouldn't have been a surprise to see Brooklyn pull away and turn this into a rout by the fourth quarter.
That didn't happen, as the Knicks bench came to the rescue again to make this a game. New York even took a 98-95 lead after an Obi Toppin dunk.
That's when Durant took this game over.
The Nets scored 17 points after the Toppin bucket. KD scored 11 of them and assisted on another bucket.
While he isn't credited with an assist on the Nets' final possession, Johnson found himself all alone in the paint because the Knicks didn't want the scorching-hot KD to beat them, so Durant's pass indirectly led to the game-winning free throws.
The only bucket that didn't have Durant's fingerprints on it was Patty Mills' game-tying layup on a Johnson feed to knot the score at 105.
As for KD's fourth-quarter work, a silky 14-foot jumper over Toppin gave the Nets a 101-98 lead:
Randle was the next victim of a smooth Durant move, as KD crossed him up before drilling a mid-range jumper for a 107-105 lead.
For good measure, KD added a free throw following a Randle technical foul.
The 33-year-old Durant, who is in his 15th NBA season, has played 37 or more minutes in each of his past five games after playing 41 more Tuesday.
He doesn't seem to mind:
Nor do the Nets, who are benefiting greatly from KD's MVP-esque play as he continues his dominance over the league.
Knicks Bench Excels Again
The Knicks' starting lineup has been a point of consternation all season as the team tries to figure out the best rotation.
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau made a seismic change by benching Kemba Walker for Alec Burks, and the move seemed to work in a 99-90 win over the Atlanta Hawks that saw the new starter drop 23 points in 37 minutes.
On Tuesday, the Knicks were forced to make a change to their starting unit midgame when RJ Barrett left after eight-plus minutes with a non-COVID illness.
That forced the bench to play more minutes, but the second unit delivered as it has all season.
The aforementioned Rose played nearly 35 minutes, finishing with a plus-11. He pulled off some vintage moves, crossing up Paul Millsap and curling around Patty Mills for a layup:
Immanuel Quickley played 38 minutes off the bench and drilled a huge fourth-quarter three to give the Knicks a 92-90 edge:
Meanwhile, Obi Toppin continued to show why he's one of the most improved players in the NBA with eight points in 11 minutes. He and Quickley linked up on this pick-and-roll, leading to another high-flying dunk:
The four primary bench players in the rotation (Rose, Quickley, Toppin, Nerlens Noel) all finished at plus-four or better against the Eastern Conference's top team.
It was another sensational performance for the second unit. Despite the loss, the Knicks can be happy knowing they went blow-for-blow with the Nets and that their early-season struggles could be behind them with the new rotation.
What's Next?
New York will host the Chicago Bulls on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET at Madison Square Garden.
Brooklyn will welcome the Minnesota Timberwolves to town on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
