Knicks 122, Raptors 120: New York edges Toronto in preseason finale
A tied game with about a minute left was settled in the Knicks' favour at Madison Square Garden.
The New York Knicks beat the Toronto Raptors 122-120 at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, October 15, in a preseason game, according to SB Nation's game coverage on Yahoo Sports and Raptors Republic.
How it finished
SB Nation reports the Knicks led 117-116 with about a minute left before Toronto's Jaden Bradley tied it at 117. New York's reserves then closed it out: Tyler Kolek and Tyler Nickel combined for five points, including a three from Kolek, while Malachi Smith answered with a late basket for the Raptors. Raptors Republic adds that Smith hit a corner three in transition and another with seconds left. Neither account describes the final possession in detail.
Individual lines
For New York, SB Nation says Mikal Bridges had 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting at halftime, and Karl-Anthony Towns had 13 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists when he sat with 5:15 left in the fourth, one assist short of a triple-double. An SNY recap carried by Yahoo notes Miles McBride hit three straight threes to close the first quarter, with New York up 35-32.
For Toronto, per Raptors Republic's player lines, Scottie Barnes scored 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting with four blocks, and former Knick RJ Barrett had 21 points and eight rebounds. Immanuel Quickley added 18 points and seven assists, and Kawhi Leonard played 23 minutes and scored six. Raptors Republic said the Raptors' defence improved noticeably in the second half after a slow start.
Raptors Republic's writer singled out Collin Murray-Boyles, who scored 12 points with five rebounds and three steals in 22 minutes and spent time guarding Towns, as the most impactful Toronto defender. The same piece noted that head coach Darko Rajakovic gave his starters meaningful minutes and played a Barnes-Leonard-Murray-Boyles combination in each half. SNY, for its part, noted Towns grabbed six rebounds in eight first-quarter minutes and that New York's rebounding was a preseason high across its five warm-up games.
Roster notes and what's next
SNY reported the Knicks waived Tony Bradley and Drew Eubanks on Thursday, leaving James Wiseman and Bruce Brown competing for the third centre spot. New York opens the regular season at home against the Philadelphia 76ers on October 20 at 7 p.m.
Preseason results are a weak guide to the regular season, and the sources do not say which players were rested, so Torch draws no conclusions from the margin.