The Knicks had one of their best wins of the season, but are there still issues overall?
The New York Knicks have made a habit of keeping people guessing this season, and Sunday night at Madison Square Garden was no different.
New York fell behind by 21 points against a short-handed Golden State Warriors squad before storming back for a 110-107 victory, and it was the defensive effort in the second half that changed everything.
After the game, Karl-Anthony Towns made sure to point out exactly where the shift happened.
"The key was our defense in the second half. We started getting stops, forcing turnovers, and that built our confidence on both ends. Once we locked in there, the offense started flowing, and we were able to climb back. The crowd helped too—they got us going," Towns said.
A Rough Start Turned Around
The Knicks looked completely out of sorts early on, falling behind 35-21 after the first quarter as the Warriors jumped on them with energy and effort despite missing Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Kristaps Porzingis.
Golden State pushed the lead to as many as 21 before New York started chipping away, cutting the gap to 54-45 at halftime and then taking the lead for the first time in the final minutes of the third quarter.
Towns finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds while Jalen Brunson led the way with 30 points and nine assists, including a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line that helped seal it down the stretch.
OG Anunoby and Jordan Clarkson both added 14 points as the Knicks got contributions from all over the roster, which has been the recipe whenever this team is playing its best basketball.
The Bigger Picture for New York
The win moved New York to 44-25 on the season, good for second in the Atlantic Division and right behind the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference standings.
But for a team with this much talent, the Knicks have been frustratingly inconsistent throughout the year.
They started the season 19-7 and looked like one of the best teams in the league before hitting a brutal 2-9 stretch from late December into mid-January that had fans questioning whether head coach Mike Brown was the right fit.
Since then, they have gone on runs where they look like true contenders, including an eight-game winning streak in late January and early February, only to follow it up with back-to-back losses to the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers last week on their road trip.
The defense has been the swing factor all year long, and Towns knows it.
When they are locked in on that end and taking care of the ball, the offense tends to take care of itself, which is exactly what happened in the second half on Sunday.
Brunson is averaging 26.2 points and 6.5 assists per game this season while Towns is putting up 19.8 points and 11.9 rebounds, giving New York one of the best one-two punches in the Eastern Conference.
What's Next
The Warriors dropped to 32-35 on the season with their fifth straight loss and are fighting just to stay in the play-in picture out West.
For the Knicks, the focus now turns to Tuesday's home game against the Indiana Pacers as they try to build some momentum heading into the final stretch of the regular season.
If Sunday's second half is any sign of what this team is capable of when they lock in defensively, the rest of the East should be paying attention.