Knicks Outlast Sonics in Battle of Attrition

Hot Start to Fourth Quarter Allows New York to Survive Late Seattle Spurt

Brent Barry, left, recorded a season-high 15 rebounds but the Sonics were still outrebounded in an 89-87 loss.

For, the New York Knicks, it must have felt like deja vu all over again. Road team enters the fourth quarter with a seemingly comfortable lead only to see it evaporate in the blink of an eye as a previously offensively- inept team explodes by making improbable shots.
The Knicks took a 74-67 lead over the Miami Heat to the fourth quarter last night before fading in the face of a Miami 27-3 flurry that turned a close game into a blowout. Miami outscored the Knicks 33-12 for the fourth quarter in winning 100-86.
The tables were turned tonight as the Knicks returned home to face the Seattle SuperSonics, who brought an eight-game road winning streak to the Madison Square Garden to put up against the Knicks' six-game slide. The Sonics took a lead of as many as 12 points in the third quarter before New York rallied to cut their deficit to just three points, 64-61.
Then, in the fourth quarter, they couldn't miss. Led by point guard Howard Eisley, who entered the game with a less-than-stellar 28% field goal percentage but scored 14 points and handed out eight assists, the Knicks came roaring back. With Allan Houston (22 points) draining jumpers under heavy duress, New York took a lead as large as 10 points halfway through the fourth quarter.
But unlike the Knicks the night before, the Sonics would not go quietly into the night, fighting back to get to six with possession at the two minute mark. Two straight misses and two free throws by New York looked to close the book on the game just inside of the one minute mark, but the Sonics had one last run left in them.
Down eight, the Sonics first got a runner from Desmond Mason and then pressured the inbounds pass, forcing the Knicks into a turnover. Rashard Lewis badly missed a three point try, but the Sonics collared the rebound and had another chance. The ball worked its way to Payton, who made a three from the corner to cut the lead to three and keep hope alive.
As the Sonics aggressively defended the inbounds pass, hoping for a steal, New York was able to get the ball to their best free throw shooter, Houston. He missed the second attempt, leaving the Sonics down four with nine seconds left and forced to call their final timeout.
After the inbounds, the Sonics patiently waited for Lewis to come free and got him the ball for a three attempt that found the bottom of the net to cut the lead to one with 4.4 seconds left. New York called timeout to advance the ball, but still ended up inbounding to their worst free throw shooter, Othella Harrington, who has made 67% this season.
Harrington missed his first try and made the second, giving the Sonics 3.7 seconds to race 94 feet and take one last shot at tying or winning the game.
Payton took the inbounds and raced towards his team's basket, visions of glory dancing through his head. It was not to be tonight, as Payton forced a difficult three attempt from just to the right of the top of the key. The shot came up short of everything, and the game -- and the Sonics' eight-game road winning streak -- was lost, 89-87.
Despite coming into the game as the NBA's best shooting team in terms of both field goal percentage and three point percentage, the Sonics' offense became stagnant and they shot just 32 of 83 (39%) from the field. There were a number of reasons for the struggles, with the most obvious being the Sonics' willingness to settle for outside shots instead of driving the lane against a Knick team that lacks a shotblocker with Marcus Camby out for the season. Seattle made just 9 of 28 three point attempts, with Lewis particularly guilty of rushing a shot beyond the arc, throwing up 10 tries and making three.
As well, the Sonics turned away from the offensive principles on which they had built their eight-game winning streak and a 7-1 record since forward Vin Baker went out with dislocated toes, ball movement and the pick and roll. Instead, they tried to beat the Knicks through individual effort in one-on-one situations.
That worked for the first three quarters, but it was largely thanks to New York's offensive mistakes. The Knicks were guilty of 18 turnovers before cleaning up their play in the fourth quarter, and also struggled in their chances at the free throw line, making only 50% (10 of 20) on the night. Seattle did play the passing lanes well, getting 11 steals, four apiece for Payton and Vladimir Radmanovic.
One way New York stayed close was on the boards, with starting big men Kurt Thomas and Clarence Weatherspoon grabbing 15 and 11 rebounds, respectively. The Sonics countered with 6-5 shooting guard Brent Barry, who had 15 rebounds himself to pace the Sonics. All told, New York held a seven rebound advantage.
After a hot start that saw them lead 15-7 early, the Sonics held a six point lead after the first quarter. It seemed they would up that to eight at the half, but a defensive lapse allowed Knicks guard Mark Jackson to drive the length of the court and make a layup as the buzzer sounded.