Knicks can't withstand second-half Clippers run, fall 126-113

The Knicks missed their first chance to clinch a postseason berth, falling to the Los Angeles Clippers 126-113 on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden.

New York started well, but Los Angeles – the NBA's second-best defensive team in the league – tightened the screws holding the home team to 18 of 40 (45 percent) from the floor in the second half. On the other end, the Knicks’ poor three-point defense got torched, coceeding 11 threes on 18 attempts (61 percent) in the second half.

Los Angeles grabbed control of the game with a monster third quarter – outscoring New York 40-29 in the period – with James Harden scoring 16 of his 29 points. The Clippers knocked down eight threes in the third alone. Kawhi Leonard (6-for-9 in the second half) added 27 points on the night.

"They got going, and it was a problem," head coach Tom Thibodeau said after the game.

Karl-Anthony Towns was the lone Knick with any firepower on the night. He finished with 34 points on 11-for-20 shooting (4-for-7 from three) with 13 rebounds, four assists, two steals, and was a plus-2 in 39 minutes.

The Knicks (45-27) dropped another game to a team with a winning record as the Clippers improved to 41-31 on the season.

Here are some takeaways...

- The Knicks opened up the first quarter playing unselfish basketball, tallying 12 assists on 14 made baskets in the quarter. Josh Hart dished out four assists and Mikal Bridges – adding this to his game in Jalen Brunson’s absence –  had five. 

New York opened up a 33-20 lead while knocking down 56 percent in the opening period with Cam Payne – in the starting lineup with Miles McBride still sidelined due to a groin injury – connecting on 4 of 6 shots and two from downtown for 10 points. Towns added 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting with six rebounds.

And that was the extent of the good news. Hart led the Knicks with a plus-7 in 34 minutes but had just seven points, six assists, and six rebounds on the night.

Bridges made just one bucket after the half to finish with 17 points on 7-for-16 shooting with nine assists and four rebounds for a plus-2 in 40 minutes. OG Anunoby went 8-for-11 in the second half to finish with 28 points but was a minus-8 in 37 minutes.

- The Clippers' 19-9 edge in second chance points and 14-2 edge on the fastbreak were a big difference in the game.

“We had good movement, we had 35 assists and the turnovers weren’t high, but the points we gave up off the turnovers were,” Thibodeau said after the game. “I think we gave up 18 there and 19 on second chance points. And that’s a lot, particularly when you’re shorthanded. That’s probably the difference in the game.

“Our margin of error is small. We gotta play extremely hard and smart, and those hustle points are huge.”

- Nine seconds into the second quarter, Hart picked up his third foul of the first half, forcing him to the bench and his impact on the game was rather limited from then on. That brought out a lineup of Bridges, Landry Shamet, Precious Achiuwa, Mitchell Robinson, and Tyler Kolek. Despite that, the home side held the visitors to a 12-9 five-minute stretch with Bridges scoring seven. Of course, the Knicks – with KAT, Anunoby, and Payne back in – allowed an 11-2 LA run as they went 1-for-4 and committed a pair of turnovers.

The bench unit was hit hard in the game; Shamet was a minus-29 in 19 minutes and Robinson a minus-22 in 13 minutes.

The Knicks shot 10-for-19 in the second, but the lead was down to one as the Clippers connected on 15 of 28 attempts as they were out-bounded 15-6 with LA grabbing seven offensive boards. The warning signs of a game slipping away were loud.

- Payne, who landed funny and appeared to twist an ankle in the first quarter, was ruled out at halftime due to a right ankle sprain. He came out at the interval to test the ankle before returning to the locker room. 

As a starter, he was effective despite the injury, scoring 15 points on 6-for-9 shooting (3-for-6 from three) with two rebounds for a plus-2  in 18 first-half minutes.

- Five minutes into the second half, the Clippers had their first lead of the game, capping an 8-0 run with a Kris Dunn wide-open corner three. Towns, scoring 10 in the period, got the Knicks back into the game, but Harden had the Clippers up 10 to enter the fourth using a 16-3 run in the quarter’s final three minutes.

- Delon Wright replaced Kolek at the point to start the fourth, and he was called for a technical foul for a flop while trying to set a screen in the quarter’s early minutes. The visitors remained in control, outsourcing New York 15-7 in the first four minutes, and the air had totally left the arena.

- With five assists in the second period, Kolek now has 22 assists and 0 turnovers in his last three games played. That stretch – over 50 minutes of action – was snapped by an errant pass in the third. He has 48 assists on the year to just 10 turnovers in 36 games this year.

Kolek failed to register a point (0-for-3 from the floor and 0-for-2 from the line) with seven assists and was a minus-14 in 19 minutes.

Highlights

Hot start tonight at MSG ♨️ pic.twitter.com/ux7OG4whrB— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) March 26, 2025

KAT ???? pic.twitter.com/2f9VXFZcCL— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) March 27, 2025

Whats next

New York heads off to Milwaukee for a single-game road trip, facing the Bucks on Friday for an 8 p.m. tip.