Towns impresses in front of Ewing as Knicks slay Raptors

NEW YORK – With Patrick Ewing, the best center in franchise history, watching from the baseline, Karl-Anthony Towns gave his best impression with a monster double-double to power the New York Knicks to a big win in his return from a two-game absence.

Questionable to play with patellar tendinopathy in his right knee, Towns warmed up and gave it a go. He wouldn’t skip the game with Ewing in attendance. But more importantly, he wanted to help the Knicks snap their season-worst three-game losing streak.

Towns delivered as he finished with 27 points and 13 rebounds to pace the Knicks in blowing out the Toronto Raptors 112-98 on Wednesday night (Thursday Manila time) at Madison Square Garden.

“That’s a legend,” Towns said of Ewing in his post-game interview with Alan Hahn of MSG Network. “That’s the man who built the ‘Mecca.’ For me to grow up watching him play, and him watching me play in the ‘Mecca,’ it’s a humbling experience.”

Towns hobbled to start the game as his decision to play looked like a mistake. But he got more comfortable as the night wore on.

Limping at the beginning, Towns was flourishing toward the end.

He punished the Raptors defense with 12 points and 11 rebounds in the second half, where the Knicks led by as many as 27.

“I thought we played well overall,” New York coach Tom Thibodeau said. “As the game went along, we got stronger and stronger, and that's what we have to strive towards each day — get better, make corrections, improve — understand that it's a long season.

“We have to keep growing when we fall short, learn from it and get ready for the next one. I thought we had a great approach to the game.”

Their next game on Friday (Saturday Manila time) will be a rematch against the Oklahoma City Thunder, who gave them a 117-107 loss, which ignited their three-game skid. The 30-6 Thunder will be fired up after their 15-game winning streak was snapped by the Cleveland Cavaliers 129-122 in the battle of the NBA’s best teams on Wednesday night.

The Raptors, though they are the second-worst team in the East, gave the Knicks a good warmup.

“They're a team that plays real fast, and they'll test you in terms of defensive transition,” Thibodeau said of the Raptors.

It’s a similar style of play in which the young and athletic Thunder thrives. The Raptors had a seven-point advantage in transition points. But the Knicks overcame that with easy baskets off their crisp ball movement in the half court.

“They had good ball pressure,” Thibodeau said of the Raptors. “And I thought our cutting really helped and, and I think that there were a number of shots that we generated that were really high-quality shots that we missed.

“And I know if we generate those types of shots, we're going to make. You know, we've proven that we're a great shooting team, so keep focused on creating those shots. And I think getting some easy baskets was key for us as well.”

Towns made it look easy, going 9-of-14 from the field for the Knicks, who improved to 25-13, the third-best record in the East.

“I work really hard on my game,” Towns told Hahn. “So, when you call it easy, that’s a lot of hours I put in.”

Josh Hart also hit 9-of-14 shots, overcoming pain from what appeared to be a hit to his rib in the first quarter. He finished three assists shy of a triple-double with 21 points, 11 rebounds and seven dimes.

OG Anunoby also had an efficient night, making 8-of-13 shots, as he remained unbeaten in four games against his former team roughly one year after he was traded to the Knicks for RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley.

The two former Knicks combined for 38 points for the Raptors.

Anunoby tied Towns with a game-high 27 points as the Knicks front court made up for their backcourt’s shooting woes.

Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges finished in double figures with 13 and 10 points, respectively, but they combined for a rough 9-of-31 shooting night, including a 3-of-15 stinker from the 3-point line.

They need to clean that up, especially when they face the Thunder, the best team in the West. But Thibodeau is unfazed and confident his team will meet the challenge.

“Look, we got a great group of guys that they work at it,” Thibodeau said. “Over the course of the season, sometimes you're going to stumble, and you got to get back up and you got to refocus. And we went through a rough stretch on the road, and lock into the recovery and do that, and then just find a way to win. 

“And I think that's a big part of growing and learning. … I think a big part of mental toughness is just having the belief that you can do things better, and if we lock into that, good things will come from it.” 

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Alder Almo is a former senior sportswriter for Philstar.com and NBA.com Philippines. He is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey, and writes for US-based publication Heavy.com.