Holiday horror for Knicks point guards

Entering this season, the fear for the Knicks was their point-guard play. The fear was realized on Christmas.

Starting point guard Jarrett Jack went score less, going 0-for-5, and committed an ill-advised flagrant foul on Joel Embiid in the third quarter with the score tied at 52. Rookie Frank Ntilikina looked lost on defense for one of the few times and failed to run the offense. He also shot poorly — going 2-of-8 overall and 0-of-2 from 3-point land — in the Knicks’ 105-98 loss to the Sixers.

Knick s coach Jeff Horn acekdidn’ t single ou tN tilik ina, but admitted Six- ers backup point guard T.J. McConnell — who burned the Knicks with a buzzerbeating, game-winner last season — was the Sixers’ Christmas hero. McConnell finished with 15 points, four assists and five rebounds.

“McConnell gave them a big lift,’’ Hornacek said. “He was active defensively. He was disruptive and got hands on some passes, made shots, drove to the basket. One time we chased him over the top — which we weren’t supposed to do — and he made one at the shot clock. He was a huge key.’’

This was Ntilikina’s f irst Christmas game and one he’d like to forget.

“I think it was our inability to run plays with defensive pressure,’’ Ntilikina said. “They did a good job of pressuring us and bringing us out of our plays. We have to go back to practice and learn how to run plays at the end of the game. They had good plays for their shooters and we didn’t go a good job of stopping them.

“It would’ve been a great game to win — it’s Christmas.”

Jack had seven assists, but couldn’t buy a shot and then got out of control on Embiid. As Embiid drove in the lane, Jack threw his body at him like a cornerback. Embiid called it “dirty;” Jack wasn’t in the locker room afterward to address reporters.

Coincidentally, Jack wore a “24’’ Redskins jersey to the game — the number of chippy cornerback Josh Norman.

The Sixers passed on Kristaps Porzing is with the third pick in 2015 and took J ah lil Okafor, the disappointing center they recently dealt to the Nets. Asked if he ever had a whatif thought, the normally loquacious Si xe rs coach Brett Brown started shaking his head, rolling his eyes and said, “Next question.’’