Karl-Anthony Towns wanted a heat check.
He didn’t hesitate after receiving a pass from Mikal Bridges, launching a deep 3-pointer from 31 feet.
He turned to the crowd to celebrate before it went through the net, bringing fans to a crescendo.
Having hit a 3-pointer on the possession before and two free throws on the possession after, it was part of a personal 8-0 run near the end of the second quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Landry Shamet wanted a heat check of his own.
He drove to the rim, hit a layup and flexed to the crowd in celebration, part of a personal 4-0 run.
Then, his 3-pointer with 3:09 left in the game gave the Knicks a 14-point lead and all but sealed the win.
As he took free throws the next time down the floor, he was serenaded with chants of his name.
It didn’t matter that they were without Jalen Brunson, who was unavailable due to a sprained ankle.
Didn’t matter that they got served another gut punch when OG Anunoby exited and was quickly ruled out with a hamstring strain in the first quarter.
On this night, Towns and Shamet resembled Kobe and Shaq.
Towns erupted for a season-high 39 points and Shamet exploded for a career-high 36 as the Knicks beat the Heat 140-132 on Friday night at Madison Square Garden to improve to 8-4 on the season and 1-1 in the NBA Cup.
This showed guts.
Beyond guts, this showed Towns is still more than capable of carrying the scoring load.
Showed just how valuable Shamet and Jordan Clarkson are as bench pieces and just how deep this Knicks roster is.
Showed an ability to adapt.
Thirty-one of Towns’ points came in the first half.
Then the Knicks’ depth shined, as 30 of Shamet’s points came in the second half.
And Shamet, primarily a spot-up shooter, was much more aggressive looking for his shot off the dribble as a slasher attacking the rim.
Clarkson poured in a season-high 24 off the bench.
Without Brunson, Miles McBride and Josh Hart took over the bulk of the point guard and ball-handling duties.
Hart finished with a triple-double, recording 12 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, while McBride had nine points and four assists.
Hart pump-faked and hit a turnaround fadeaway to beat the buzzer at the end of the second quarter, sending the Knicks into halftime with a 10-point lead.
Mitchell Robinson was in foul trouble all night, but still somehow hauled in eight offensive rebounds.
Two of those came in the fourth quarter and were key to the Knicks pulling away.
He has become unstoppable on the glass.
Bridges, though he was quiet offensively, was active on defense with seven steals and two blocks.
After taking a 64-62 lead with 2:53 left in the second quarter, the Knicks led the rest of the way.
In the fourth quarter, Hart led a fast break, found a cutting Clarkson, who kicked it out to Shamet behind the arc, who swung it to Bridges for an emphatic 3-pointer.
It capped off a 10-0 run that gave the Knicks a 14-point lead with 9:29 left in the game, and was emblematic of the team’s all-around effort.
There was something from everyone.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
