NBA: RJ Barrett helps Knicks hold off Lakers
RJ Barrett #9 of the New York Knicks is congratulated by Isaiah Hartenstein #55 of the New York Knicks after scoring a basket against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half at Crypto.com Arena on March 12, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images/AFP
RJ Barrett scored 13 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter and the New York Knicks stopped a three-game losing streak by holding on for a 112-108 victory over the host Los Angeles Lakers Sunday night.
Julius Randle led the Knicks with 33 points after shooting 5-of-24 in Saturday’s loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, but it was Barrett playing the role of closer.
Barrett was 6 of 12 in the fourth quarter and hit the tiebreaking basket when his layup snapped a 93-93 tie with 9:26 remaining. Barrett hit a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 106-96 with 5:01 left and his basket made it 110-100 with 2:34 left but it was New York’s final basket and the Knicks survived a dicey finish.
🔥 33 points for Julius Randle
🔥 30 for RJ Barrett (13 in the 4Q)
🔥 Big road W for NYK pic.twitter.com/8t4cGJyfke— NBA (@NBA) March 13, 2023
A layup by Dennis Schroder made it 110-108 with 19.3 seconds left and Josh Hart hit two free throws with five seconds remaining to make it 112-108. After the Lakers called their final timeout, the game ended when Russell missed a 3-pointer with 1.3 seconds left.
Before Barrett produced in the fourth, he was 6-of-15 as the Knicks lost an eight-point lead and trailed 86-85 going into the fourth.
The Knicks were without Jalen Brunson (sore left foot) for the second straight game and fourth time in five games since the guard was injured March 3 in Miami. New York improved to 4-5 without Brunson and won for the 10th time in 13 games.
Russell made six 3-pointers and scored 33 points but the Lakers saw their three-game winning streak stopped and they missed an opportunity to reach .500 for the first time this season. Russell was 1-of-5 in the fourth quarter when the Lakers were held to 22 points.
Anthony Davis added a double-double of 17 points and 16 boards but also missed four free throws as the Lakers missed seven foul shots after going 19-for-19 in Friday’s win over Toronto.
Immanuel Quickley started for Brunson and contributed 15 points for the Knicks, who shot 47.7 percent.
Randle scored 18 points, including 14 straight New York points as the Knicks erased a seven-point deficit and held a 31-27 lead after the opening quarter. Randle capped a 25-point half by hitting a 3-pointer with 3.1 seconds left to give the Knicks a 62-59 lead by halftime.
