Karl-Anthony Towns made a crucial layup in the last minute and finished with 24 points and 15 rebounds as the New York Knicks won 113-108 against the Toronto Raptors on Monday night. Towns followed up his key basket with a 3-pointer to seal the Knicks’ fifth victory in their last six games.
Mikal Bridges contributed 23 points, Jalen Brunson had 20 points and 11 assists, Josh Hart added 10 points, and OG Anunoby, a former Raptor, scored 14 points and blocked three shots.
RJ Barrett, a former Knick, led the Raptors with 30 points. Scottie Barnes scored 15 points before leaving the game with an ankle injury in the third quarter. Jakob Poeltl had 10 points and 12 rebounds, while Ja’Kobe Walter scored a career-high 19 points off the bench.
The Knicks led 34-27 after the first quarter and stretched their lead to 11 points with a 7-0 run early in the second quarter. The Raptors then responded with 13 straight points to take a 55-53 lead with 2:35 left in the second. Toronto led 61-60 at halftime after Brunson missed two free throws with six seconds left.
Barnes hit two 3-pointers in the third quarter to give the Raptors a five-point lead with 8:23 to go. Barnes and Towns collided on the floor with 6:47 left in the third, with Barnes limping to the locker room after being called for a foul. Towns stayed in the game and made two free throws. Barnes, who had a sprained right ankle, did not return. The Raptors led 86-83 at the end of the third quarter.
The Knicks gained a two-point lead on a 3-pointer by Towns with 5:12 remaining. Barrett tied the game with a layup, and a 3-pointer from Davion Mitchell put the Raptors ahead 104-101. Brunson then made a four-point play to put the Knicks up by one with 3:03 left.
Toronto regained the lead on Mitchell’s layup, but Bridges responded with a 3-pointer to give New York the lead again with 1:38 remaining. Barrett tied the game with a layup with 42 seconds to go, setting up Towns to score the final points and seal the win for the Knicks.
