It doesn’t matter how many Knicks fans fill the seats. How many key Nets are sidelined. When the two teams meet, the team from Brooklyn can basically roll the balls out and prevail.
Until further notice, the Nets own the on-court aspect of this city rivalry. They certainly own the Knicks.
It continued Saturday. The Knicks were coming off two of their best wins of the season, over the Cavaliers and the Celtics. The Nets were without Kevin Durant and Ben Simmons.
It was hard to tell the Nets were shorthanded. They were that much better for the majority of the first three quarters, toying with the Knicks. And when the Knicks did throw a run at them, the Nets responded with a haymaker to end any thought of a comeback, and cruised to their ninth straight win over their local rivals, 122-115, at Barclays Center.
Kyrie Irving led five Nets in double figures with 32 points and added nine assists. He was part of a 3-point barrage for which the Knicks had no answer. The Nets hit 22 triples in 40 attempts, creating open looks all game off dribble penetration.
The Knicks, who trailed by as many as 19 points, got within four early in the fourth quarter, but the Nets (30-19) then delivered the knockout punch in the form of a 16-2 burst capped by consecutive 3-pointers from Seth Curry and Irving. Tom Thibodeau’s Knicks had one last run in them, getting to within three in the final minutes, but Curry (14 points) drilled a backbreaking 3-pointer with 2:44 to go, and Irving did the rest, scoring 21 points in the final quarter.
Jalen Brunson had 26 points for the Knicks (27-24) and RJ Barrett added 24. Julius Randle chipped in 19 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.
Before the game, Thibodeau issued a warning to his players: If you still feel good about beating the Celtics on Thursday, it would show.
They didn’t listen. The Knicks were a step slow for almost the entire first half. Their close-outs were nonexistent. Their ball movement was slow, at best. The Nets took advantage, leading by as many as 18 in a dominant first half. At one point, the Nets had 13 assists on 18 made field goals, and had hit 10 of their 18 3-point attempts. It came from all angles, with seven different Nets hitting from distance.
Really, the Knicks were fortunate to be down by only 13 at the break. A combined 24 first-half points from Barrett and Randle helped the cause, one of the few things that went right before intermission.
Not much changed after halftime. The Knicks’ perimeter defense remained porous at best and the Nets made them pay. After consecutive 3-pointers by O’Neale and Harris, the lead was a game-high 19 with 7:39 to go in the third.
The Knicks finally responded, though, ripping off an 18-6 run to close the third quarter, getting them within seven. They scored 32 points in the third, with eight points from Barrett. Isaiah Hartenstein gave them a lift off the bench, scoring the final four points of the period.
Hartenstein also scored on the first possession of the fourth quarter to make it a five-point game. The Knicks had a chance to get even closer, but Miles McBride missed an open 3-pointer and the Nets reeled off five straight points, reclaiming momentum.