Karl-Anthony Towns Praised by Fans as Knicks Avoid Upset to Giddey, Bulls with OT Win

Karl-Anthony Towns posted 32 points and 18 rebounds as the New York Knicks held on for a 113-111 overtime victory over the visiting Chicago Bulls on Thursday.

Towns shot just 2-of-15 in the first half but made 12 of his next 15 shots to finish 14-of-30. The big man also scored 16 points during a 4:36 stretch in the third quarter.

In OT, Towns was clutch again, scoring six of the Knicks' nine overtime points on a trio of buckets.

The 37-18 Knicks played shorthanded without starters OG Anunoby and Josh Hart but were still clear favorites heading into this game against the Bulls, who fell to 22-33.

However, the Knicks had to fight tooth-and-nail against a gritty Bulls team led by Josh Giddey, who torched the Knicks for 27 points and 16 rebounds.

New York's backs were against the wall at the tail end of regulation with the score tied at 104 and the seconds winding down, but Mikal Bridges stuffed Nikola Vučević's shot at the rim before the buzzer.

In OT, the Knicks were up 113-106 thanks to a Miles McBride three and Towns' six points, but Bulls guard Coby White went on a personal 5-0 run to cut the lead to 113-111 with 51 seconds left.

The Knicks had two chances to make it a two-possession game on the other end after getting an offensive rebound but could not convert. Vučević then had a chance to tie the game, but his eight-footer fell short as time expired.

Elsewhere in the box score, McBride finished with 23 points, three blocks and three steals, while Knicks guard Jalen Brunson posted a 22-point, 12-assist double-double. For the Bulls, Vučević complemented Giddey with 21 points.

However, the story of this game ended up being Towns, who is on a three-game heater.

His tremendous second half and OT performance served as the catalyst for the Knicks' win.

Towns and the Knicks don't have much time to rest, as a date at the first-place Cleveland Cavaliers now looms on Friday evening.