Knicks run out of gas as defense flops in second half in ugly loss to Bulls
CHICAGO — The Knicks better hope it was just tired legs on Saturday night.Otherwise, getting throttled by the Bulls is a sign of problems even larger than their lack of depth.On the second night of a back-to-back after a taxing loss to the Thunder, the Knicks ran out of steam in the third quarter of a 139-129 disheartening loss to the Bulls.It translated to their first losing streak since early November and arrived because defense turned optional after an extended halftime to honor Derrick Rose.The Bulls (16-19) dropped 41 points in the third quarter and 76 in the second half.
The Knicks (24-12) scored enough behind Karl-Anthony Towns’ 44-point explosion and Jalen Brunson dropping 26 of his 33 in the opening half.But the defense disappeared with Chicago shooting 54 percent, getting 33 points apiece from Zach LaVine and Coby White.Brunson, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges — who all played at least 40 minutes the night prior in OKC — were benched for most of the fourth quarter, when the Knicks launched a comeback that failed after the starters returned.Towns left for the locker room with 1:34 left, appearing to hold his thigh.
There was no immediate information on a potential injury.The third quarter was the story.It was a sloppy mess for the Knicks with seven missed treys on seven attempts.
Their nine-point halftime advantage turned into a 15-point deficit heading into the fourth quarter, and Tom Thibodeau’s squad never recovered.Just like Friday in OKC, Thibodeau maintained an eight-man rotation and his bench was outscored by Chicago’s, 31-17.The Knicks starters looked gassed and were dominated, with the Knicks being outscored by 21 points in Bridges’ 33 minutes.Josh Hart managed just two points in 40 minutes and missed all five of his field-goal attempts.So it was a celebratory evening for a Bulls franchise that hasn’t had much to celebrate in recent years.
The other reason was Derrick Rose Night, which brought the NBA’s youngest MVP back to the U...