MSG Roars, but Knicks Still Lose

HAWKS 107 - KNICKS 105

For the first time in about 15 months Madison Square Garden was at full throttle with over 15,000 fans sitting shoulder to shoulder -- even with the pandemic far from over, and less than 45 percent of the state of New York fully vaccinated, mind you -- they sat there hoping that their Knicks would bring the glory days back again to open the 2021 postseason.

Instead Atlanta's Trea Young had other ideas. With 0.9 left in regulation, Young hit a running jumper to sink the Knicks 107-105, silence the crowd and send the Knicks home for the night down 1-0.

Young was deadly on Sunday night, netting 32 points, 10 assists and 7 boards. He also accounted for 13 of Atlanta's 36 fourth quarter points, and nailed off his free throws. In fact he was 9-for-9 from the charity stripe.

The loss is especially disappointing for the Knicks who came back to take a 73-71 lead at the end of the third quarter. But the Knicks never enjoyed a lead larger than 7 points when Taj Gibson sank a free throw to make it 73-66 with 1:12 to go in the third. The Hawks always had an answer for every Knicks shot.

After Alec Burks hit three consecutive free throws to give the Knicks an 82-76 lead, Atlanta's Bogdan Bogdanovic nailed a three-pointer to cut the Knicks lead to three. Lou Williams would take over hitting a couple of jump shots that tightened the Knicks lead down to one point, 84-83, before Burks answered with a couple of huge jump shots to keep New York in front.

With 4:13 to go the Hawks took control when Clint Capela's layup that cut the deficit to 93-91, was quickly followed by a three-pointer by Bogdanovic to swing Atlanta in front 94-93. De'Andre Hunter's 26-foot three would give the Hawks their largest lead of the half at 97-93.

After RJ Barrett hit a douce for New York, Julius Randle nailed a three-pointed from down town to give the Knicks the lead back at 98-97.

The seasaw action would continue the rest of the way with Derrick Rose's 15 foot jumper tying it for the Knicks at 105 with 10.2 to play before Young won it for the Hawks just seconds later.

Game two at the Garden is Tuesday, but Atlanta already has stolen home court advantage in this series.

Comments

Jets, Dolphins and Patriots Playoff Breakdown

Here are the formuli that could get the Jets into and out of the playoff party this season: 1) If the Jets win against Seattle and Miami, they win the AFC East based on a better conference record (8-4) than the New England Patriots, even if New England wins out as well. 2) If the Patriots win out and the Dolphins win out and finish at 11-5, the Jets would be 10-6, or 9-7, and probably out of the playoffs. Both New England and Miami would make the playoffs, with the Dolphins as a divison winner and the Patriots as a wild card. The Patriots make the postseason if Baltimore loses one of its final two games. 3) If the Patriots win out and the Dolphins and Jets split, then the Patriots win the AFC East. The Jets will have to hope that they beat Miami to win that tie-breaker and, further, hope that they have a better conference record than the Baltimore Ravens in order to clinch the sixth seed. 4) If the Patriots and Ravens win out and the Dolphins and Jets split their final two games, then ...

Is Aaron Glenn in Danger of Getting Fired?

According to Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio there is a "chance" that Jets head coach Aaron Glenn could be fired at seasons end. While Florio doesn't site any sources, the rumor has caught fire the last two days. The question is would it make sense? Let's examine this for a second? Why it Makes Sense: Glenn has not been great in his first year as Head Coach of this team. The talent has taken a major step backwards, granted two of those talented players were traded away in Sauce Gardner to Indianapolis and Quinnen Williams to Dallas. The decision he and GM Darren Mougey made to give Justin Fields a two year deal proved to be a horrible mistake, and Glenn stuck with Fields for far too long before pulling the plug following the Jets loss to the Patriots on a Thursday night in mid November. Glenn gave now former Defensive Coordinator Steve Wilks too much power to run the defense, and the players couldn't stand Wilks. Reports indicated this week af...

Same Ol' Jets! Gang Green Dropped by Ravens

RAVENS 24 - JETS 9 In short the opener to the 2022 season for the New York Jets was a complete and utter disaster. A team that came into the season with the promise of better days ahead, a team that had taken on so many kudos in the off-season for what so many in the media had claimed was an impeccable off-season and draft, came out flat as a pancake when it mattered the most. If this was a debut of what is to come for the Jets in 2022, you better start preparing your 2023 draft boards. Sunday's 24-9 loss wasn't just a defeat at the hands of a better team, it was a total indictment of the Jets current predicament. The Jets offensive line, which has been battered and beaten this summer with the losses of Meckhi Becton and Duane Brown looked like a sieve on Sunday. Joe Flacco, who is not exactly fleet of foot, was under siege all afternoon. The fact he came out of Sunday's game having been sacked only three times was a miracle in itself. George Fa...

COHEN'S CORNER SPORTS

Search This Blog