Without Derrick Rose, Knicks get away with a win, sweeping the Kings

With Derrick Rose out for the second straight game with back spasms and with Kristaps Porzingis who continues to have a hard time shooting the ball, the Knicks got a breath of oxygen from Carmelo Anthony.

A photo posted by NBA (@nba) on Dec 9, 2016 at 10:07pm PST

After having a quiet night against the Cavaliers and facing critics from president Phil Jackson for keeping the ball too much, Anthony dropped 33 points against the Kings. Melo scored 29 points before the start of the fourth quarter, and struggled in the last act, missing all of his jump shots.

With 21 seconds left on the clock, DeMarcus Cousins missed a driving layup that could have given the Kings a one point lead and set a difference course of the game. Up by three with under 3 seconds left to play, Anthony missed both of his free throws, Cousins rebounded and shoot a 52-foot three pointer to send the game in overtime. The ball hit the rim as time expired and the Knicks started a 5 game road trip with a 103-100 win.

In spite of shooting just 6-19 from the field, Porzingis logged another double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Joakim Noah grabbed 9 rebounds and scored 4 points, including a couple of crucial free throws in the final moments of the game, to help the Knicks secure the victory, while Brandon Jennings finished with 13 points and 7 rebounds as a starter.

Kyle O’Quinn led the bench with 8 points, 11 rebounds (5 offensive), 5 assists and 2 blocks while Justin Holiday ended up with 7 buckets.

The Knicks are now 13-10 and will continue their west coast trip on Sunday when they’ll visit the struggling Los Angeles Lakers (10-15), who have lost 8 of their last 10 games.