Randle, Knicks hold off Lakers 112-108
LOS ANGELES — Julius Randle scored 33 points in a bounce-back performance, RJ Barrett got 20 of his 30 in the second half, and the New York Knicks snapped their three-game losing streak with a 112-108 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.
Immanuel Quickley had 15 points as the Knicks survived a ferocious late rally by the Lakers to salvage a weekend split in Los Angeles without second-leading scorer Jalen Brunson, who has a bruised left foot.
Los Angeles scored eight straight points down the stretch, trimming New York’s lead toötwo points on Dennis Schr der’s layup with 19.3 seconds left. After Los Angeles needed 14 seconds to commit a foul to stop the clock, former Lakers guard Josh Hart hit two free throws to seal it.
“We did enough to win, and the tone was set at the beginning by Julius,” New York coach Tom Thibodeau said. “It gave us the confidence that, you know, ‘We’re here.’ … We have a very young team, so when you have a young team and Julius is just going into his prime, the only way they’re going to get better is by working. If they’re not working, they’re not going to get better.”
New York hadn’t won since its impressive ninegame winning streak ended a week ago, but Randle added eight rebounds and five assists one day after struggling through a 5-for-24 shooting effort in a loss to the Clippers.
“Shooting the ball the way I did yesterday, I wanted to be a little bit more in attack mode and aggressive going to the basket,” Randle said.
D’Angelo Russell had a season-high 33 points and eight assists despite managing just two points in the fourth quarter for the Lakers, whose three-game winning streak ended with only their fourth loss in 12 games since the trade deadline. Russell said the Lakers struggled against the Knicks’ trap defense in the fourth quarter.
“That one hurt for us,” Russell said. “We were battling, trying to do everything we could. Couldn’t get enough rebounds, enough stops. Making those shots just didn’t go our way, I guess. Can’t pinpoint anything, really. It’s tough.”
Anthony Davis had 17 points and 16 rebounds, but the Lakers fell behind during an erratic shooting performance by three starters: Malik Beasley, Troy Brown Jr. and Jarred Vanderbilt were a combined 5 for 23, missing 14 of their 16 3-point attempts.
“I played terrible,” Davis said. “I couldn’t find my shot. Free throws. Layups. Everything. Guys did their job. I didn’t do my job to