Knicks takeaways from Sunday’s 110-102 win overs Clippers, including Cam Reddish’s debut

The Knicks won 110-102 against the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday afternoon at the Garden, snapping their three game losing streak.

With Kemba Walker out, the Knicks starting five included Alec Burks, Mitchell Robinson, RJ Barrett, Evan Fournier and Julius Randle.

Here are the takeaways….

After turning the ball over on the first possession, Randle knocked down his first three to get the Knicks scoring started. Fournier followed with a three of his own. Barrett joined the party with a three of his own to lead the Knicks’ 11-2 run to start the game.

Robinson made his presence felt near the rim in the first quarter. Grabbing offensive rebounds and getting involved in the offense. The center would score five points and post three rebounds and two assists in the first quarter.

With six second left in the quarter, Cam Reddish was subbed in and was greeted by an ovation from the MSG crowd. Randle missed a three, and Quentin Grimes missed a putback as the first quarter ended with the Knicks on top, 39-31.

The story of the first quarter was the three pointers. The Knicks made 8-of-11 from long distance and shot 52 percent overall. However, the Clippers shot 67 percent overall and 6-of-10 from three. Barrett and Randle scored 10 points each and were the only players in double-digits after the first quarter.

Reddish started the second quarter along with Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Nerlens Noel and Grimes. Reddish made a reverse layup around the 10:30 mark to score his first points as a Knick. The second unit went out to a 9-0 run after the Clippers cut the Knicks’ lead to three thanks to great defense which led to transition offense.

The Clippers went on a 11-0 run with 3:30 remaining in the second thanks to great defense and Knicks turnovers to cut New York’s lead to 56-54. Reggie Jackson scored 12 of his 14 points in the second.

Barrett would score five straight points and came up with a steal to stop the Clippers from having the last shot. Barrett did miss a half-court heave but may have been bumped, which the referees missed. The Knicks went into halftime up 66-61.

Story continues

The third quarter began with a good defensive sequence, which led to a transition three from Fournier. The Knicks went out to a 5-0 run before Robinson left the floor after stepping on Luke Kennard‘s foot and twisting his ankle. He would not return.

The Clippers cut the Knicks’ lead to 82-75 with four minutes remaining in the third. The key play was when Barrett was hit with a technical foul after arguing with the referee when he thought he was hit when driving to the basket.

The Knicks held off multiple Clippers attempts to cut the lead to single digits, but entered the fourth quarter up 91-81.

Both teams began shooting well, but Quickley was the one to get the offense moving with great passes to Randle and Barrett for easy dunks.

Taj Gibson would pick up four fouls in five minutes of play, which gave the Clippers plenty of free throw attempts in the fourth. The Clippers went on a 6-0 run to cut the Knicks’ lead, but timely shots by Randle and Fournier continued to keep Los Angeles at bay.

The Knicks’ offense stalled in the last few minutes with missed shots and untimely turnovers, which let the Clippers cut the lead to 108-102 with 30 seconds remaining. The Knicks would make their free throws and come away with a 110-102 victory.

Barrett led the Knicks with 24 points, and posted 14 rebounds and six assists (tying a season-high). Randle added 20 points and nine rebounds of his own. Fournier (14) and Burks (10) were the only other Knicks in double figures on Sunday.

Highlights

What’s next

The Knicks travel to Cleveland to take on the Cavaliers on Monday at 7 p.m.