Immanuel Quickley scored 15 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter while Evan Fournier scored 23, and the New York Knicks held off the host Houston Rockets 116-103 Thursday night.
Quickley closed out the Rockets with his perimeter marksmanship in the final period, making his first five 3-pointers as the Knicks turned a two-point lead entering the fourth into an easy victory. Quickley added four rebounds and four assists in the game and was one of three reserves to score in double figures, joining Miles McBride (15 points) and Mitchell Robinson, who had 17 points with nine rebounds. Robinson added three blocks and McBride nine assists.
Julius Randle scored 21 points but missed 12 of 18 shots for the Knicks, who lost Derrick Rose to a sore ankle in the first half.
Daniel Theis posted a double-double (22 points, 10 rebounds) for the Rockets while Jae’Sean Tate paired 20 points with six assists before fouling out. Kenyon Martin Jr. scored 15 points and Josh Christopher had 14 off the bench for the Rockets.
The Rockets erased what was a 17-point deficit when Garrison Mathews drilled a 3-pointer with 5:13 left in the third that tied the score at 70. Houston briefly took the lead when Christopher picked Quickley and converted that turnover into a transition layup and 74-72 advantage.
But Fournier scored the ensuing seven points for the Knicks, and when Taj Gibson nailed a corner 3-pointer with 80 seconds remaining in the third, the Knicks reclaimed a five-point lead.
The Knicks were buoyed by their hot perimeter shooting early, draining 7 of 11 3-pointers in the opening period. Fournier and Randle combined for 21 points in the quarter while the Knicks also received 16 points from their bench. When Alec Burks sank an open, second-chance 3-pointer with 8:30 left in the half, the Knicks extended their lead to 49-33 and threatened to run away.
But Houston closed the half with a 15-4 run, limiting the Knicks to 1-for-9 shooting while forcing four turnovers during that stretch. Tate scored eight points for the Rockets in that closing surge.
–Field Level Media
