TORONTO – Scottie Barnes led all scorers with 29 points but the Toronto Raptors still fell to the New York Knicks 119-106 on Friday.
Pascal Siakam had 21 points and eight rebounds but missed all four of his three-point attempts for Toronto (9-11). Barnes also pulled down nine boards.
Raptors centre Jakob Poeltl had a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Jalen Brunson had 22 points and eight assists as New York (12-7) won its third straight. Julius Randle was an assist shy of a triple-double, with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and nine helpers.
Donte DiVincenzo had 21 points off the bench, with his seven three-pointers more than Toronto’s entire roster.
RJ Barrett of Mississauga, Ont., had 15 points, six assists and four rebounds for the Knicks.
In the first quarter, Toronto point guard Dennis Schroder sent a long pass over all the retreating Knicks to a charging Barnes for an easy layup and a 15-9 lead. Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau called a timeout after the lacklustre defence.
New York went on a 9-3 run after that, with Randle making a pair of free throws to tie the game. Randle finished the quarter with nine points as the Knicks built a 34-26 lead.
That momentum carried into the second, with New York leading by as many as 10 points. But Siakam fired up in the quarter, scoring 10 points to help Toronto cut that lead, with the game tied 57-57 at intermission.
Brunson scored five points as the Knicks opened up a quick seven-point lead after the break. New York kept that pressure up in the third, with Immanuel Quickley hitting two free throws to close out the quarter, giving the Knicks a 90-77 lead.
Raptors forward OG Anunoby broke out for a two-handed dunk with 7:59 left to play in the game, bringing the sold-out crowd at Scotiabank Arena to their feet. That jam brought Toronto to within nine of the visitors.
After a Knicks timeout, DiVincenzo knocked down his fifth three-pointer of the night to re-establish New York’s two-digit lead. New York never looked back after that, leading by as many as 19 points in the final frame.
LAWSUIT RIVALRY — Toronto head coach Darko Rajakovic and Thibodeau refused to answer if the game had extra meaning with the Knicks suing the Raptors, Rajakovic, and a handful of other personnel at Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment. The Knicks filed suit on Aug. 22, alleging the defendants conspired to steal thousands of videos and other scouting secrets in July and August.
DICK SICK — Rookie forward Gradey Dick was held out of the game with an undisclosed illness. He had 21 points on Friday afternoon as the Raptors 905 beat the Maine Celtics 124-114 in a G-League matinee at Scotiabank Arena. Dick felt sick after the game, leading to him being scratched from the NBA Raptors’ roster for the night game.
UP NEXT — The Raptors have a long break between games, next playing the Miami Heat on Wednesday at Scotiabank Arena.
The game was added to Toronto’s schedule after the Raptors didn’t advance in the NBA’s in-season tournament.
New York travels to Milwaukee to face the Bucks in the tournament’s quarterfinal.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 1, 2023.
© 2023 The Canadian Press
