Warriors Hang on, Get Best of Knicks in the Bay

The Golden State Warriors continued to roll on Saturday night in San Francisco, defeating the New York Knicks 97-94 for their seventh consecutive victory. The Warriors, 39-28, are sixth in the Western Conference. 

Stephen Curry, with 28 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists, did not shoot well (8-for-20, 4-for-13 from deep) but led the Warriors to the win while Moses Moody chipped in with 18 points on 7-for-14 with four triples. Jimmy Butler was just 3-for-11 for 11 points but did have 7 assists and 6 rebounds.  

The Knicks, meanwhile, stand at 42-24, third in the Eastern Conference. Playing without star guard Jalen Brunson, who will be out through to April, Karl-Anthony Towns rose to the occasion with 29 points and 12 rebounds, including 11 consecutive in the fourth quarter. Towns finished 12-for-21 and 3-for-5 from downtown. 

The Warriors shot just 40% and the Knicks 43% in the game that was scrappy with guys that play tough and physical. Towns and Green got into it early (Towns picked up three fouls early on) and Josh Hart (7 rebounds, 7 assists), OG Anunoby (23 points and 9 rebounds) and Jimmy Butler always put forth an honest effort doing the little things. The Knicks muddied up the game, but the Warriors, who have lost just once since acquiring Butler at the trade deadline, prevailed. 

Butler gives them a very interesting wrinkle now, as he along with Green are both supreme hustle guys, giving the team an element of toughness. Butler, as evidenced by tonight’s effort despite 3-for-11 shooting, does a lot of different things well and can impact the game in many areas. 

After a 32-31 first quarter, neither team scored over 22 points in each of the remaining three quarters.