|
|
 |
Stoudemire and Knicks rise up, and The Garden roars
|
By Howard Beck
December 23, 2010
New York, NY — They had watched Paul Pierce take a victory lap and LeBron James take whatever he wanted, and finally the Knicks had seen enough. They took their stand Wednesday night, in the paint and at the rim, and reclaimed Madison Square Garden for themselves.
Amar’e Stoudemire leaped and swatted away Russell Westbrook’s shot. A roar filled the arena. Kevin Durant drove, and Stoudemire batted that threat away, too. The decibel level doubled.
By the time the Oklahoma City Thunder had come to terms with it all, half of the Garden crowd was on its feet, screaming and breaking into chants of “M.V.P.!”
The malaise left by three straight losses had been expelled, and the Knicks cruised to a 112-98 rout of the Thunder, one of the NBA’s best young teams.
The Knicks (17-12) led for the entire second half but the outcome was still in doubt when Stoudemire blocked shots by the Thunder’s two best players within four seconds early in the fourth quarter. A layup would have cut the lead to 13 points. Stoudemire snuffed the effort, negated the Thunder’s offensive rebounding and ignited another Knicks run, pushing their lead to 20.
“There’s no backing down in us,” Stoudemire said. “We’re not going to back down at all. We’re going to protect the paint by any means. That’s pretty much our philosophy right now.”
The “M.V.P.!” chants at the Garden have become habitual, almost perfunctory. But Stoudemire, who also had 23 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists, earned every chant, and a spontaneous standing ovation with eight minutes still left in the game.
The victory was the Knicks’ 14th in 18 games, and one of the most impressive, coming against the talented Thunder (20-10) and on the heels of emotional defeats last week by Boston and Miami at the Garden.
Three days off surely helped the Knicks’ health and psyche. It also gave them a chance to practice, a luxury they rarely had for the last several weeks amid a packed schedule. Stoudemire had time to rest a sore neck. Toney Douglas (shoulder) and Ronny Turiaf (knee) also looked more spry.
“I think more than physically it was emotional,” Coach Mike D’Antoni said. “We had to come back down to sea level after the week we had in the Garden.”
Turiaf said it was more about preparation than rest or energy, but he responded with 11 points to lead a resurgent bench. Shawne Williams had 7 points, 3 blocks and 3 big plays in the third quarter. Douglas had 9 points. Wilson Chandler had 21 points, and every starter scored in double figures.
Durant, the NBA’s scoring leader, had 26 points and Westbrook had 23, but the Knicks more than met the assault, holding the Thunder to 39.2 percent shooting.
Despite his pledges to use the bench more, D’Antoni stuck with the usual eight-man crew. The eighth man, Williams, proved invaluable at a critical juncture of the third quarter.
The Thunder had cut the Knicks’ lead from 19 points to 8 and momentarily quieted the building. The momentum was shifting. Then Williams stripped a driving Westbrook and hit two big baskets — including a tip-in of a missed Turiaf free throw — as the Knicks regained control and took a 90-78 lead by the end of the quarter.
“I feel like when I play hard, lucky things happen,” Williams said. “I believe the basketball gods, they reward hustle plays. So, just keep hustling. I feel like the ball will find you and it will find the goal.”
Durant dominated the first quarter with 13 points and put Chandler on the bench with two fouls. His teammates picked it up from there, building an 8-point lead with Durant taking a breather in the second quarter.
The game turned rather quickly, with a barrage of Knicks 3-pointers and hustle plays, all culminating in a 30-10 run. The Knicks scored 11 unanswered points to take the lead, then followed with a 10-0 burst for a 63-51 edge.
The rest of the night was a series of roars and ovations, none bigger than the one given to Stoudemire in the fourth.
“It was great,” he said. “They noticed the hard work and our dedication to playing defense. And that sequence right there in the fourth quarter, we really need to take that step toward closing the game out and get stops.”
REBOUNDS
The happiest man at the Garden had to be Donnie Walsh, the team president. Walsh was attending his first game in six weeks, since undergoing hip surgery on Nov. 16. “I don’t think I’ve ever been away from an arena that long,” said Walsh, a self-professed gym rat. “I don’t remember missing games in Indiana at all, for 23 years.” When Walsh missed a game, it usually meant he was scouting a college game. “My whole life’s an arena,” he said. “I’ve never had a window that looks out.” Walsh watched last week’s three-game set — against Denver, Boston and Miami — on television. “I knew it was special,” he said.
• NBA News Archive Index:
2010, 2009
Knicks Tickets
Oklahoma City Thunder Tickets
Do you need Sports Ticket Depot to help you hunt down your cheap Knicks tickets or cheap Oklahoma City Thunder tickets? Contact us or fill out our NBA ticket information request form. We will hunt down your cheap Knicks tickets and cheap Oklahoma City Thunder tickets for you!
Knicks Basketball Jerseys
Oklahoma City Thunder Basketball Jerseys
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
