Category: NBA

Two steps forward, one step back. That’s been the story of the season for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

On a beautiful Friday night in downtown Minneapolis, the Timberwolves took on the Portland Trail Blazers, looking to go for the 3-0 sweep of the homestand. The Wolves were again without both Anthony Edwards and Naz Reid, making the game against a Portland squad still trying to win games far from a gimme.

Without Edwards, the Wolves’ offense struggled to find consistent offense in the first half as they shot 20/48 (41.7 percent) from the field. With Mike Conley no longer in the rotation, the Timberwolves do not have a lack of ball handling in their rotation, which only gets worse with Edwards unable to play.

“We don’t have a primary handler right now,” Chris Finch said pregame. “We’re really defusing that through pace and just early movement, and it tends to feed itself. We’ve seen that all season long. The faster we play, the quicker we make decisions, the more the ball moves.”

Following an 0-7 stretch from beyond the arc to start the third quarter, the Wolves found themselves down by 18 points late in the second quarter. With the game potentially teetering out of control, Minnesota was finally able to remove the lid from the basket.

Minnesota made three straight 3-pointers, including two from Bones Hyland and one from Ayo Dosunmu, to close the half on an 11-2 run, cutting the Portland lead in half going into the break.

The offensive success continued into the third quarter as the Wolves made 15 of their first 20 shots in the quarter as the Wolves played with a near-perfect combination of pace and ball movement to take an 83-81 lead, their first lead since they were up 12-11.

Minnesota’s defense was a large reason for the turnaround as well. Despite giving up 68 points in the first half, they completely shut down Portland’s third-quarter offense, limiting them to 7-20 (35 percent) from the field while forcing six turnovers.

As we’ve seen too many times this season, though, the Wolves were not able to sustain that level of play the rest of the game. This time, it was the offensive side of the ball that fell apart late in the game. As the game slowed down over the final 15 minutes of the game, the Wolves’ offense made just six of their final 28 shot attempts, including nine straight misses immediately following taking their largest lead of three points.

“Looking back, I probably should have not tried to execute anything because we weren’t very good at trying to do that,” said an exasperated Finch postgame. “I thought we were playing well and then lost our head in transition a bunch. Quick shots, sloppy turnovers. It kind of let [Portland] re-stabilize the game.”

Despite the poor offensive stretch, the Wolves were able to keep the game close and took the lead back with less than a minute left as Randle used his patented bully-ball moves to get into the lane and hit a jumper to put Minnesota up by one.

On the subsequent defensive possession, the Wolves’ defense forced a pair of missed shots from Jerami Grant and Deni Avdija, but each time the Blazers were able to grab the offensive rebound, their 17th and 18th offensive rebounds of the game.

“It’s been that way for a while; it’s just not good enough,” Finch said of the Wolves’ poor rebounding. “We knew our guards needed a rebound. Ayo did a good job on the defensive glass. Rudy did a good job, but after that, we gotta have more rebounds. Julius has three defensive rebounds. That’s not good enough. It’s just not good enough.”

After a Portland timeout, Grant drained the dagger 3-pointer when Randle got caught up on a screen, leaving his man wide open.

that’s a lot of separation pic.twitter.com/o5kM5ymD15

— Jonah (@Huncho_Jman) March 21, 2026

The Wolves were unable to respond on the other end and lost by a final score of 108-104. They now sit in sixth place in the Western Conference following wins tonight from both the Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets.

Randle led the Wolves in scoring with an inefficient 19 points on 6-16 shooting from the field. Dosumnu was sensational the entire game, coming up just two assists shy of a triple-double with 17 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists. Rudy Gobert was again great on both ends of the floor, greatly limiting the Trail Blazers’ offense while putting up 18 points and 15 rebounds.

The loss by itself isn’t a terrible one. Being without both Edwards and Reid made offense tough to come by, and the Trail Blazers are still a team trying to win basketball games, which at this point in the season makes a big difference. In the context of the season at large, though, it’s a tough pill to swallow, especially when the same issues continue to pop up over and over again.

“The start of the game, it’s been the same the last few games. We’ve got to find a way to start the game more fired up,” Gobert said. “I think it’s just being mentally ready to start the game. We were warmed up, it’s not physical. It’s just mentally being a little sharper.”

Effort and mental focus have been common refrains throughout the season, but 71 games into the season, that explanation feels like a mask for larger, more deeply rooted issues with this Timberwolves roster in terms of both fit and quality.

The Wolves have been one of the healthiest teams in the entire NBA this season. While they were missing Edwards and Reid tonight, there have been plenty of games earlier in the season where the Wolves’ opponent was missing significant firepower, and they were unable to capitalize on it with a win. Every team goes through injuries, and those injuries play a big role in the result of games, but in a long NBA season, how a team deals with those night-to-night injuries shows a lot about who that team is at full strength.

In tonight’s game, the Wolves came out flat on the defensive glass, by the admission of their starting center, and were not able to execute down the stretch of the game, and just plain weren’t good enough, according to the coach, to get this game across the finish line.

This Wolves team has an incredibly high ceiling. They can beat anyone on any given night, but have not been able to consistently play high-level basketball. Their longest win streak this season is just five games, a fairly small number for a team with championship aspirations.

With now just 11 games left in the season, the inconsistency is just who these Timberwolves are.

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Up Next

The Timberwolves now head out east for a matchup with the Boston Celtics, who recently added Jayson Tatum back into the lineup following his Achilles injury during last season’s playoffs. The game tips off at 7:00 PM CT this Sunday, airing nationally on NBC and Peacock.

Highlights

Following the Knicks' narrow win over the Nets on Friday night, coach Mike Brown and the players spoke after the game...

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Handling Nets' physicality 

The Nets made it a point to be physical with the Knicks on Friday night. And, for a good portion of the evening, it seemed to give them the advantage.

New York could not get going offensively, and Brooklyn was beating them on the glass and the 50-50 balls. And it was a constant approach by the Nets and Brown said it affected the team's play.

"They were extremely physical from the beginning of the game and it impacted us," he said. "[Nets coach] Jordi Fernandez outcoached me, they outplayed us in a lot of areas. We were just able to find a way to get a win."

Although the Knicks came away with the 93-92 win, it wasn't pretty. They had to overcome a double-digit deficit early and then almost blew their 14-point lead in the fourth quarter. Brown pointed at the season-high 22 turnovers and the lack of three-point defense. The Nets shot 37 percent from three but had a lot of open looks.

Despite that, the Knicks found a way to win, led by Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns as they retook the lead late and held on.

"They’re an NBA team and they’re a really great team. Great talent, great coaching staff. There was no part of me that thought this would be an easy game," Towns said of the game's physicality. "We had to meet them and exceed the physicality. They brought it today. They wanted to win the game. It was a team effort to find a way to win."

The Nets' physicality came to a boiling point in the second quarter. After Mitchell Robinson took some hard fouls -- even ones that were not called -- in the previous possessions, he went up for an alley-oop when he was fouled hard by Nolan Traore. 

Robinson stood over Traore when Danny Wolf tried to get the Knicks big man away. Some pointing and shoving ensued -- and some technical fouls were assessed -- but cooler heads prevailed. That moment seemed to wake up the Knicks, as they closed the first half on a run that cut their first-half deficit to just six.

Robinson was asked about the moment after the game.

"I'm not going to speak on it right now," he said. "It is what it is. I'm not talking about that s--t."

When asked about the physicality, Robinson responded in kind.

"[When it gets physical] You get physical back. That's how it's going to be," Robinson answered. "You got to stand on business."

"You got to protect yourself, especially when something like that happens," Towns said of the Robinson scuffle. "We need him. We need him on this team, we need him available and healthy."

Nolan Traore fouls Mitchell Robinson and a dust-up ensues.

The foul is ruled a common foul, and the Nets' Ziaire Williams and Robinson were each hit with a technical foul. pic.twitter.com/qlOUnVBLHR

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) March 21, 2026

KAT's personal reasons

Entering Friday's game, the Knicks updated their injury report to include Towns. He was questionable for the game against the Nets for personal reasons.

Towns wound up playing and was a big reason why they pulled off the win. He spoke to the MSG broadcast from the Barclays Center floor after the win and alluded to his father's health. 

He was asked about his pregame status in the locker room after the game.

"I wasn’t going to play. My pops was adamant...he wanted me to play," Towns said without going into too much detail. "I said I would. I showed up just to play. I’m going to head right back out and go be with him again on the road to recovery."

It's unclear whether Towns will be available for the Knicks' next game, but he'll have the day off Saturday but New York hosts the Wizards on Sunday night.

Combatting slow starts

The Knicks have a starting problem.

The last few games, they've gotten off to bad starts against bad teams. Although they've been able to overcome them, Friday was one shot away from their worst loss of the season.

It was a topic for Brown and the players after the win.

“They brought the fight to us. They came out and wanted to prove a point. Our approach has to be better," Robinson said. "We can’t just look at their record and just say, ‘Alright, we’re gonna whip their ass.’ We’ve just gotta be better all together, and until we figure that part out, it’s gonna be a long rollercoaster.”

"Just got to come out better. Just got to be better as a team," Mikal Bridges said. " It’s mentally, I think. Just got to be mentally ready when the game starts."

On Friday, Brown called an early timeout in the first quarter and he just didn't like what he saw with the ball security.

"We were real lackadaisical with the basketball," Brown explained. "We had 13 turnovers at halftime….I know as of late, for the most part, we’ve been pretty good in that area. We ended the game with 22. It’s not a good ingredient to have when you’re trying to get a road win, no matter who you’re playing.

"If your approach is not what it is, and the other team feels it, anybody can get beat at any time at any level. I said before the game, Brooklyn went into Detroit and beat Detroit. We know we have to play better. I believe in our guys. I believe our guys will play better."

 

DENVER (AP) — Jamal Murray scored 31 points, Nikola Jokic made a go-ahead jumper with 45 seconds left and the Denver Nuggets held on for a 121-115 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Friday night.

Jokic finished with 22 points and nine rebounds, Tim Hardaway Jr. had 23 points and shot 7 of 10 from 3-point range and Aaron Gordon added 16 points for the Nuggets, who improved to 8-8 since the All-Star break.

Jakob Poeltl scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the Raptors, who had a three-game winning streak snapped. Brandon Ingram added 19 points and R.J. Barrett had 18.

The Nuggets trailed 101-98 before Hardaway tied it with a 3-pointer with 7:27 remaining. Denver was up 115-110 with 1:43 left, but the Raptors got right back into it.

Scottie Barnes, who finished with 15 points, had a layup with 1:32 remaining. Poeltl three-point play on a layup and free throw after he was fouled by Jokic tied it at 115 with 60 seconds left.

But the Nuggets closed with a 6-0 run to seal the victory. Jokic had a turnaround jumper, Murray made three free throws and Gordon made one of his own to cap it.

Up next

Raptors: Play at Phoenix on Sunday night.

Nuggets: Host Portland on Sunday night.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Kristaps Porzingis left the Golden State Warriors' 115-101 loss against the Detroit Pistons with lower back spasms on Friday night.

The injury occurred in the first quarter when his back tightened up before getting worse in the second quarter.

Porzingis told reporters that he is unlikely to play on Saturday, when the Warriors take on the Atlanta Hawks.

The Hawks traded the Porzingis to Golden State in February.

"We'll see," Porzingis said. "Maybe it loosens up tomorrow. Who knows? But right now it's pretty stiff."

Porzingis had recently returned to the Warriors' rotation earlier this month after missing time due to an illness.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kristaps Porzingis leaves Warriors' loss to Pistons with injury

PHILADELPHIA, PA — You just never know what celebrities will show up for March Madness, even in a first-round matchup that tips off at 10:30 p.m. local time.

For Friday's fourth and final game at Xfinity Mobile Arena between the 2-seed Connecticut Huskies and the 15-seed Furman Paladins, the celebrity guest is comedian and actor Bill Murray.

The "Ghostbusters" and "Groundhog Day" star was shown on the jumbotron before tip-off of the and got the arena to erupt out of fandom and cheer. ... Or it could have been the fact that the original 10 p.m. ET tip-off that was delayed by the end of UCLA-UCF was finally setting up.

Bill Murray is here @XMobileArena to watch UConn-Furman.

His son, Luke, is an assistant coach on Dan Hurley’s staff. Murray has been a regular at UConn #MarchMadness games over the years. pic.twitter.com/wF6b0WdRuz

— John Leuzzi (@ByJohnLeuzzi) March 21, 2026

The Huskies, chasing their third national championship in the last four years, are looking to become the first 2-seed to be upset in the NCAA Tournament this season. UConn leads Furman 40-36 at halftime with Tarris Reed Jr. leading the way with 19 points and 16 rebounds.

But why is Murray attending March Madness?

Here's what to know to know:

REQUIRED READING: How UConn basketball's defense returned Huskies to national contender status

Why is Bill Murray at UConn-Furman March Madness game?

Though he is a basketball fan, Murray is in the City of Brotherly Love to support his son, Luke Murray, who is an associate head coach on the Huskies' coaching staff.

This isn't the first time that Murray has attended a Huskies game in the NCAA Tournament, as he was in attendance for UConn's back-to-back national championship runs in 2022-23 and 2023-24 on top of other postseason games.

Luke Murray is in his fifth season on the UConn bench. Before taking the Huskies assistant job in 2021, he was an assistant at both Xavier and Louisville under now the College of Charleston coach Chris Mack. He is in his ninth season on Hurley's staff across three different stops.

Is Bill Murray a UConn basketball fan?

You could say so by extension of the fact that his son is a member of Dan Hurley's coaching staff. He may be more of a Luke Murray fan.

Where is Bill Murray from?

Bill Murray grew up in Evanston, Illinois and was a fan of the Illini as a child. He moved to New York City in 1974 where he paired up with John Belushi on The National Lampoon Radio Hour — a comedy radio show that was created, produced and written by staff from National Lampoon magazine — before landing a spot on NBC's "Saturday Night Live." He attended Regis University in Denver but dropped out before graduating.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Is Bill Murray a UConn basketball fan? Why comedian is at March Madness game

The Lakers (45-25) aim to extend their winning streak with a victory over the Magic (38-31) on Saturday.

Start time and TV schedule

Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Orlando Magic

When: 4 p.m. PT, Mar 21

Where: Kia Center

Watch: NBA TV, Spectrum Sportsnet

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When the Lakers last faced the Magic in February, they were in the midst of a slump where it seemed like their season was falling apart.

Fast forward to a month later, the purple and gold have completely turned things around and are now in the midst of their longest winning streak of the season.

A lot of this has to do with Luka Dončić’s MVP surge as of late, the team coming into form and each player accepting their role. We’re currently seeing the best version of this Lakers team.

Orlando is currently on a three-game losing streak and determined to get back in the win column and stay afloat in the playoff race.

So fans should expect the Magic to fight hard in this one. They’re still waiting on Franz Wagner to get healthy, but that doesn’t mean they can’t beat the Lakers.

It was Paolo Banchero who led the Magic against the Lakers last time. LA had no answer for his 36 points. It’ll be interesting to see how this improved defense contains Banchero and other offensive threats like Desmond Bane and Wendell Carter Jr., if he suits up.

It’ll also be fascinating to see how the Magic come up with a game plan to not only contain Dončić but also Austin Reaves and LeBron James.

In their last meeting, the Lakers disappointingly allowed 15 second-chance points and 58 points in the paint to the Magic. They also lost the rebounding battle 47-39. Orlando is not a good 3-point shooting team, which is why they combat that with their presence inside the paint. The Lakers must be more impactful inside the paint if they want to win this one.

Let’s see if the Lakers can make it nine in a row against the Magic on Saturday.

Notes and Updates

• For the Lakers’ injury report, Maxi Kleber (lumbar back strain) is out, while Austin Reaves is questionable.
• As for the Magic, Franz Wagner (left high ankle sprain), Jonathan Isaac (left knee sprain) and Anthony Black (lateral abdominal) are out. Moreover, Wendell Carter Jr. (left rib contusion) is questionable.

You can follow Nicole on Twitter at @nicoleganglani.

The losses continue to pile up for the Warriors.

They lost Kristaps Porzingis in the first half. They lost control of the ball 26 times. And they lost to the Pistons on Friday night, 115-101, for the ninth time in their past 11 games.

Both teams played without their best players after Cade Cunningham was diagnosed with a collapsed lung, but Jalen Duren led six Detroit scorers in double figures with 23 points.

The Warriors’ 26 turnovers set a season high and led to Golden State attempting nine fewer shots than the Pistons. De’Anthony Melton (14 points), LJ Cryer (3 of 5 from 3) and Brandin Podziemski (15 points) scored in bursts, but no Warriors player found the bottom of the net consistently enough to overcome their carelessness with the ball.

What it means

It’s looking more likely that the Warriors will have to travel for the 9-10 play-in game. Golden State’s last loss dropped it into 10th place behind the eighth-place Trail Blazers and ninth-place Clippers.

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Turning point

There was never a point where the Warriors played anything resembling clean basketball, so they were done as soon as the opening tip, even though they built a lead as large as nine midway through the first half.

With all their absences, the Warriors had little margin for error against the top team in the Eastern Conference, and they committed a cacophony of them.

MVP: Brandin Podziemski

All 11 Warriors who saw the floor committed at least one turnover, but Podziemski was only responsible for two despite acting as the primary ball handler for most of his minutes.

Stat of the game: 14

As their injuries piled up, the Warriors went 14 straight games with a different starting five each night. Steve Kerr was finally able to start the same lineup against Detroit as he did in Boston. Only the Grizzlies (16) have a longer streak in the NBA this season, while the last time the Warriors went 14 games in a row without the same starting five was in 2008-09. 

It looks like Golden State will have to use another starting lineup Saturday against the Hawks after Porzingis left late in the first half with lower back soreness and did not return.

Up next

The Warriors face Jonathan Kuminga and the Hawks in the second half of a back-to-back on Saturday. Kuminga has missed 11 of 17 games since the Warriors traded him to Atlanta for Porzingis, but he is expected to be available against his former team.

Golden State is also set to provide an update on Steph Curry (knee), who missed his 20th consecutive game but has begun to increase his basketball activities.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Tyler Fay pitched Alabama's first nine-inning, complete-game no-hitter in 84 years, striking out 13 in a 6-0 victory over Florida on Friday night.

Fay retired the last 10 batters, getting Brendan Lawson to fly out to left to end the game. Fay, who had never pitched more than seven innings in college, threw a career-high 132 pitches, 85 for strikes.

The redshirt junior from Doniphan, Nebraska, issued a walk in the second inning and another in the sixth against the Gators (19-4, 3-1 SEC), who are ranked as high as No. 17. Fay came into the season as Alabama's No. 1 starter and entered the game with a 3-2 record and 5.43 ERA.

The Crimson Tide (16-7, 1-3) hadn't had a pitcher throw a complete-game, nine-inning no-hitter since Eddie Wocar did it at Mississippi on April 24, 1942.

Florida was no-hit for the first time since Jacksonville’s Tom McMillan did it in a seven-inning game June 1, 1963.

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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports

DETROIT (AP) — Jalen Duren scored 23 points as the Detroit Pistons beat the Golden State Warriors 115-101 on Friday night in a game missing two of the NBA’s biggest stars.

The Pistons beat the Warriors in the first matchup of the season between the teams on Jan. 30, but that was the last game Golden State’s Steph Curry (knee) has played this season. Now, Detroit’s Cade Cunningham (chest) has joined him for an extended absence.

Golden State’s injury situation got worse in the first half when Kristaps Porzingis left the game with lower back soreness.

Daniss Jenkins, starting for Cunningham, had 22 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for Detroit, which has won six of its last seven games. Paul Reed added 15 points for the Pistons, who won despite shooting 23.8% (5 for 21) on 3-pointers.

Golden State, which has lost seven of eight, turned the ball over 26 times, leading to 32 Pistons points. Brandin Podziemski had 15 points to lead Golden State.

KNICKS 93, NETS 92

NEW YORK (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns had 26 points and 15 rebounds, and New York outlasted the Brooklyn for their fourth consecutive victory.

Jalen Brunson scored 17 points and OG Anunoby finished with 16 for the Knicks, who trailed by 13 points in the first half, then blew a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter.

Ben Saraf had a chance to win it for the Nets at the buzzer but missed a 45-footer.

The Knicks beat the Nets for the 14th straight time, the longest winning streak for either team in the local rivalry. The Nets’ last victory over the Knicks was on Jan. 28, 2023, shortly before trading Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

Josh Minott scored 22 points and Ziaire Williams added 17 for the Nets, who have lost six straight games.

ROCKETS 117, HAWKS 95

HOUSTON (AP) — Kevin Durant scored 25 points, Jabari Smith Jr. added 23 and Houston snapped Atlanta’s 11-game winning streak.

Alperen Sengun had 15 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds for Houston, which was just 4-6 in its previous 10 games and was coming off back-to-back losses to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker led Atlanta with 21 points, but the Hawks shot just 42% from the field and 26% (9 for 35) from 3-point range. Houston shot 51% overall and 47% (14 of 30) from deep.

CJ McCollum had 17 points and Zaccharie Risacher had 16 for Atlanta, which was riding its longest winning streak in over a decade that had positioned the team for a play-in berth.

The Rockets outrebounded the Hawks 51-37.

CELTICS 117, GRIZZLIES 112

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Jaylen Brown scored 30 points, Luka Garza added a season-high 22 points and Boston used a fourth-quarter rally to defeat Memphis.

Payton Pritchard added 19 points for the Celtics, who have won four straight. The win kept Boston in second place in the East, 1 1/2 games ahead of the New York Knicks who held on for a 93-92 victory over Brooklyn earlier Friday night.

Tyler Burton, who signed a 10-day contract with Memphis on March 12, led the Grizzlies with 23 points, a career-high. Ty Jerome added 16 points and seven assists. Javon Small and DeJon Jarreau finished with 13 points each.

TRAIL BLAZERS 108, TIMBERWOLVES 104

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Jerami Grant made a 3-pointer with 22.2 seconds left and Portland escaped with a win over Minnesota.

After a timeout by the Trail Blazers, Grant took an inbound pass from Jrue Holiday and made his fourth 3 of the night from the right corner. Grant grabbed a defensive rebound at the other end and made two free throws to finish with 26 points in Portland’s third straight win.

Donovan Clingan scored 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for his sixth straight double-double. Deni Avdija added 25 points and eight rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who moved into eighth place in the Western Conference. Holiday had 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Rudy Gobert led short-handed Minnesota with 18 points and 15 rebounds. Ayo Dosunmu added 17 points and tied a career high with 10 rebounds.

Julius Randle added 19 points for the Timberwolves, but they lost for the first time in three games without All-Star guard Anthony Edwards, who remains out with right knee inflammation. Center Naz Reid, a top bench player, missed his second straight game with a right knee sprain.

NUGGETS 121, RAPTORS 115

DENVER (AP) — Jamal Murray scored 31 points, Nikola Jokic made a go-ahead jumper with 45 seconds left and Denver held on for a victory over Toronto.

Jokic finished with 22 points and nine rebounds, Tim Hardaway Jr. had 23 points and shot 7 of 10 from 3-point range and Aaron Gordon added 16 points for the Nuggets, who improved to 8-8 since the All-Star break.

Jakob Poeltl scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the Raptors, who had a three-game winning streak snapped. Brandon Ingram added 19 points and R.J. Barrett had 18.

HOUSTON (AP) — Kevin Durant scored 25 points, Jabari Smith Jr. added 23 and the Houston Rockets snapped Atlanta's 11-game winning streak with a 117-95 victory over the Hawks on Friday night.

Alperen Sengun had 15 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds for Houston, which was just 4-6 in its previous 10 games and was coming off back-to-back losses to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker led Atlanta with 21 points, but the Hawks shot just 42% from the field and 26% (9 for 35) from 3-point range. Houston shot 51% overall and 47% (14 of 30) from deep.

CJ McCollum had 17 points and Zaccharie Risacher had 16 for Atlanta, which was riding its longest winning streak in over a decade that had positioned the team for a play-in berth.

The Rockets outrebounded the Hawks 51-37.

The Rockets ked 62-54 at halftime then pulled away by outscoring the Hawks 39-22 in the third quarter.

Onyeka Okongwu had three assists including the 600th of his career. He is averaging 3.2 assists per game this season, the most of his career.

Up next

Hawks: Return home to play Golden State on Saturday night.

Rockets: Host Miami on Saturday night.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

The Brooklyn Nets were so thoroughly “embarrassed” last time out (Jordi Fernández’s word, not mine) that the loss didn’t reflect just their own shortcomings, but for many, a spiritual rot at the center of the NBA. Brooklyn scored just 24 points in the first half against the Oklahoma City Thunder’s historic defense, not just a poor output but a disgraceful one.

Let’s definitely add 2 more teams pic.twitter.com/BKMEap1jJX

— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) March 19, 2026

Hark! The doubtless millions who tuned in to watch the defending champions face an Eastern Conference cellar-dweller with less than a month left in the regular season were rudely treated to a 29-point blowout. What is the NBA prepared to do about it? A question that surely must be asked and debated every day, all the time.

On Friday evening, the Brooklyn Nets didn’t just cap off their three-game homestand. They defended their honor, against the New York Knicks no less.

The 17-52 Nets were the more physical team from the jump, more engaged on defense than they’ve been in weeks. The visitors underestimated their opponent, yes. But Brooklyn’s multiple efforts were no less impressive…

Knicks seem (understandably) taken aback by Nets' physicality/effort to start this one pic.twitter.com/szkflIPP7q

— Lucas Kaplan (@LucasKaplan_) March 20, 2026

After a successful first half, Ziaire Williams told YES Network’s Meghan Triplett: “We owe them one. They whooped on us last time we played ‘em, this one’s a little more personal. We’re just getting after it.”

Williams spoke no lie. This was not going to be another 120-66 win for the ‘Bockers. The Knicks scored a season-low 14 points in the first quarter. This marked quite a role reversal for Brooklyn, who took a 50-44 lead into the break, much to the dismay of the majority blue-and-orange Barclays Center crowd. Brooklyn defended Jalen Brunson particularly well, trapping his ball-screens and showing aggressive help when he had a one-on-one matchup. The Knicks captain shot just 7-of-19 in this one while ex-Net Mikal Bridges (boy that feels like ages ago) scored just nine points .. one point for each of the assets the Knicks gave up for him. Instead, OG Anunoby and Karl-Anthony Towns took the offensive lead.

Dare I say it almost felt like a rivalry? Perhaps the Knicks were just pissed about their sluggish start, but Mitchell Robinson and Ziaire Williams got double-techs in the first half after Robinson took great offense to a Nolan Traore foul…

Nets and Knicks getting negative 🍿

(h/t @IQfor3)pic.twitter.com/xuNn9q2JQC

— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) March 21, 2026

Nic Claxton and OG Anunoby continued the fun in the second half, picking up double-techs after refusing to keep their hands to themselves.

Sadly, it was not Brooklyn’s first-round rookies that kept them in this one. At least offensively. Danny Wolf, Nolan Traore, Drake Powell, and Ben Saraf combined to shoot 9-of-33. Traore, at the very least, had seven assists (to four turnovers) while Powell and Saraf applied noteworthy ball pressure on Brunson.

Brooklyn’s rangy wings led them in this one. Ziaire Williams scored 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting, two of them coming on this pick-six…

STEAL & JAM 😤

ZWILL with 10 points in the half pic.twitter.com/oAENstkp8N

— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) March 21, 2026

Said Fernández: “Sometimes we gotta let Ziaire be Ziaire, right? His energy is contagious, and a lot of times it’s not going to be perfect, but he just makes up — sometimes he’ll make mistakes and he makes up for them with, like, that extreme energy.”

Josh Minott, age 23, led the team with 22 points, making a career-high six threes. Once again, it was his best game in a Nets uniform, perhaps the best game of his career. He also recorded a couple blocks and a steal, even hitting OG Anunoby with a nasty pump-fake and score at the end of the first quarter…

damn OG where you going? pic.twitter.com/WQH2hQ2ZQr

— Lucas Kaplan (@LucasKaplan_) March 21, 2026

“Played really, really, really hard,” said Fernández. “And then you see his line right … he’s playing very well, took advantage of his minutes. And you know, it’s good to see, you know, continuing to evaluate these guys going into the summer.”

Yet again, it was the bench outplaying the starters, and they were rewarded with major second-half minutes. It appeared the Knicks were finally running away with it toward the end of the third quarter, taking their first double-digit lead of the game.

Then, out of nowhere, Chaney Johnson, Malachi Smith, Ochai Agbaji, Saraf, and Minott lead an 11-0 Nets run to make things tight once again…

GO UP AND GET IT CHANEY!!! 😤@__cjohn__ | @AuburnMBBpic.twitter.com/9sAY44rTOX

— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) March 21, 2026

It was nail-biting time. Unsurprisingly, neither Claxton nor Williams ever returned to the game, but tank or no tank, the reserves truly earned the opportunity.

Per Fernández, the veterans even urged their head coach to keep rocking with the two-ways and 10-day: “‘They’re rolling, they’re rolling, stay with them,’ and it was good to see. It’s good how they support each other and how they see that we have a chance to win.”

Brooklyn took an 87-84 lead with just over three minutes to go. They were really about to do it. This was beyond tanking — the deepest part of Brooklyn’s roster was outplaying the nonchalant Knicks. Alas, it was not to be. Brunson hit a pull-up, KAT continued to bulldoze his way to the line, as he shot more free-throws than the Nets by himself.

Postgame, Fernández hinted but did not explicitly say that poor refereeing really killed his team: “It comes down to the free-throw line and some of those things we cannot control. You know, 32-to-10, it’s absolutely — if you do your math, it’s 22 free-throws of difference. Yeah. Right there is the game, but the guys played the right way.”

KAT, however, missed his final two attempts, giving the Nets one last chance to pull off the stunner. But their first sideline-out-of-bounds play was deflected, and all they could muster was a Ben Saraf half-court heave that fell ten feet short. That may be for the best in the long run, and this will go down as just another loss, same as the 54-point blowout they experienced in MSG.

But it sure didn’t feel that way.

Final Score: New York Knicks 93, Brooklyn Nets 92

Milestone Watch

• As previously mentioned, Minott made a career-high six 3-pointers against the Knicks, and his 22 points, marks the second-most in his career. Additionally, his six 3-pointers tie Ziaire Williams as the most 3-pointers by a Net off the bench this season.

Josh Minott Speaks

Yes, this one deserved its own category.

Postgame, a passionate Josh Minott sat at the podium and cursed, a lot. Normally, we censor that sort of thing on NetsDaily, but given that it might be the best quote any Net has given in years, I’ll make an exception for Minott, who was asked what his first taste of the crosstown rivalry meant to him.

“I wanted that shit so fucking bad,” he began…

Josh Minott had a passionate response when asked about tonight’s tight loss in his first Nets-Knicks matchup:

“I wanted that shit so fucking bad. Ever since we’ve been here, it’s like every game’s an away game. Tonight was just the night to really just stick it to everybody.… pic.twitter.com/RDyYkYf55u

— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) March 21, 2026

Yes, Minott went there, touching on the “away” crowd that dominates most games at Barclays Center, particularly when the Celtics (his former team) or the Knicks pay a visit. But man. It’s tough not to root for Minott — particularly as a Nets fan — after Friday night.

“It’s just all about trying to just help the team win. Like I said since I’ve been here, we have such a good group of people, it’s easy to like them. I know we’re all young, but I’d say that damn near adds to us … I feel like it’s so easy to just click with everybody. I mean, they’ve welcomed me, they’ve uplifted me since I got here. And it’s like, you just know right there. So I’d say tonight, it was a demonstration of what we have moving forward.”

Injury Report

Pregame, Jordi Fernández provided a couple updates on injured Nets, including one for Michael Porter Jr.

Brooklyn announced on Thursday that an MRI revealed a left hamstring strain for their leading scorer, scheduled to be re-evaluated in two-to-three weeks. The regular season, of course, has just over three weeks left. It would be quite the surprise if Porter Jr. plays in another game this season, though Fernández wouldn’t commit to that.

“Two-to-three weeks, but obviously there’s ramp-up to get back to a competition level,” said Fernández. “So, you know, we cannot predict [if he will play again], but it will be close. So we go through these two, three weeks, and then put the work in and so forth. And then we’ll see where we are.”

The head coach also revealed that Noah Clowney will miss at least one more game — the Nets travel to Sacramento on Sunday — with the sprained right wrist he suffered on Wednesday evening.

Next Up

We have one hell of a tanking battle on our hands. The 17-win Nets travel to Sacramento to face the 18-win Kings in their first of two meetings this month. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. ET. At the moment, the Nets hold the third best odds for the overall No. 1. That puts them two games behind the Kings and a half game behind the Wizards with 12 to go.

Meanwhile, the Nets have opened a four-game gap over the Jazz. Absent an unlikely Nets win streak and season closing losing streak by Utah, it seems increasingly likely that the Nets will finish the season with a top four pick.

• Boxscore: New York Knicks 93, Brooklyn Nets 92 – NBA
• Game Highlights: New York Knicks 93, Brooklyn Nets 92 (Video) – NBA
• Jordi Fernandez PostGame Press Conference (Video) – YES Network
• Ziaire Williams PostGame Comments (Video) – YES Network
• Josh Minott PostGame Comments (Video) – YES Network
• Knicks edge Nets 93-92 for their 14th straight victory in the New York rivalry – Adry Torres – AP
• Knicks squeak out win over lowly Nets to narrowly avoid huge embarrassment – Stefan Bondy – New York Post
• Josh Minott erupts, Nets rally late, but Knicks close out season sweep ($) – C.J. Holmes – New York Daily News
• Nets rule out Noah Clowney, update Michael Porter Jr. timeline as absences mount before Knicks matchup ($) – C.J. Holmes – New York Daily News
• Towns’ double-double lifts Knicks to narrow win over lowly Nets ($) – Steve Popper – Newsday
• Knicks start was bad but they came away with the ‘W’ ($) – Barbara Barker – Newsday
• Nets’ Josh Minott drops 22 points in narrow 93-92 loss to Knicks – Sharif Phillips-Keaton – USA TODAY

The Golden State Warriors entered Friday night’s road game with the 16th-best offense in the NBA, a number that has dropped to 23rd during Steph Curry’s prolonged absence. Their opponent, the Detroit Pistons, entered the game with the league’s second-best defense.

It wasn’t a fair fight, though the broadcast’s frequent mentions of how long Detroit had gone since winning 50 games or a playoff series — 18 years in both cases, though they reached the 50-win plateau yesterday — served as a reminder that the recently-dynastic Dubs won’t be getting sympathy points from any team or fanbase. They had their run in the sun, and now they’re subject to other teams’. Somewhere out there, John Tesh is making a synth-heavy remix of The Lion King’s “Circle of Life,” and it’s quite lovely.

The Warriors caught the Pistons during a bad stretch, which is to say that MVP candidate Cade Cunningham has a collapsed lung and is sidelined for the foreseeable future. But once Cunningham’s All-Star running mate Jalen Duren was cleared to play, shortly before tip-off, the outcome of the game became somewhat predetermined.

Golden State — sans Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler III, Al Horford, Quinten Post, and Moses Moody — would surely struggle to both score on Detroit’s dynamic, athletic, Bad Boys V3.0 defense, and struggle to contain their large and hyper-athletic squad. And wouldn’t you know it — sometimes basketball makes sense. Sometimes the square peg fits in the square hole and it all works, even when you don’t want it to. And so it was that the Pistons beat the Warriors 115-101 in a game that went precisely as you expected it to.

Well, almost precisely. It took a detour at the start, as the Warriors tried to make the Pistons the latest team that they shocked with a March Madness underdog-inspired upset. The Dubs matched Detroit’s defensive pace early, with a tremendous amount of energy, effort, and aggression. It made for an atrociously ugly game in the early goings, but it was fun: it was physical and sloppy, which was compounded by poor officiating and separate incidents of players flying off the court that resulted in a spilled drink and an overturned candy container. Five minutes in, the score stood a 1990s-esque 7-7, with all of Golden State’s points coming courtesy of De’Anthony Melton (he would net their first nine, and take a breather before a single teammate had scored).

The Warriors were scrappy on offense, but not good. They were accomplishing things through sheer will, in spite of their poor execution. Their defense, on the other hand, was good, if unconventional. Steve Kerr kept things from getting predictably by running a zone late in the quarter, which silenced Detroit, and suddenly the Warriors took the lead. Despite having seven turnovers in the opening frame, they ended things on a 12-1 run, and led 26-21.

Things got even rosier when the second quarter began. Two-way contract LJ Cryer, back after a few absences due to a hamstring injury, wasted no time impacting the game, with a pair of threes in the first few minutes, pushing the Warriors lead to 38-29, and forcing a Pistons timeout.

Whatever J.B. Bickerstaff said in that timeout worked. It was as if the Pistons magically remembered that they’re an elite defensive team, and suddenly Golden State’s offense went flatter than a frat keg on a Tuesday morning. And as it did, Detroit started to find their rhythm on offense, and began cutting away at the nine-point deficit. With just over four minutes, the Pistons finally tied the game, and shortly after they retook the lead. The Warriors were leaking oil, yet somehow staying right with the Pistons … they didn’t look as good as their counterpart, but the scoreboard certainly didn’t reflect that (in part because the Warriors were red-hot from deep, while Detroit couldn’t buy a bucket beyond the arc).

Inside of a minute remaining in the half, the Warriors trailed by just two points. But then came a game-shifting sequence of events. The Pistons had the ball, and were playing for a two-for-one, which they executed perfectly. Duncan Robinson drained a three, and on the other end, the Warriors could only hoist a shot-clock beating circus shot. As the prayer went up, Robinson leaked out, and after a quick outlet, he had an easy transition layup right before the halftime buzzer.

Just like that, the Pistons had landed what felt like — and proved to be — the knockout blow, and took a 57-50 advantage into the break.

Things went from bad to worse before the second half even began. Kristaps Porziņģis, who had subbed himself out of the game late in the first, was nowhere to be found on the court or in the bench, with Malevy Leons taking the court in his stead. The Warriors announced that Porziņģis — who had finally been healthy — was ruled out for the game with lower back soreness. The slim chances of winning the game grew slimmer still and, more importantly, Porziņģis’ future for the final 12 games of the season now hangs in doubt.

From there, it just kept getting worse. The Warriors could not get anything going on offense, as the Pistons completely suffocated them. Possession after possession, the Warriors looked like they were playing five-on-six against their big brothers. Not only was every shot contested, but every pass, every cut, and every dribble. It was a truly swarming defensive effort, and if you haven’t watched Detroit much this year, it left you tipping your cap to a team that has it truly figured out on that end of the court. Add in the sheer physicality, and you can bet that Bill Laimbeer and Ben Wallace are grinning every time they turn on a game.

As the quarter went on, the Pistons used their elite defense to generate easy offensive opportunities, either through transition buckets or clear mismatches. The deficit grew to double digits, and then ballooned into the high teens. The Warriors tried to find opportunities on offense, but every bucket felt like a chore, and they trailed 87-73 at the end of the quarter.

Whatever closeness they had entering the final frame was immediately lost. The Pistons scored before the quarter even began, on a free throw courtesy of a between-quarters technical foul on Gary Payton II. Duren followed that up with a layup. Leons turned the ball over on the ensuing possession, and then Duren sank a pair of free throws. Ömer Yurtseven turned the ball over, and then Duren finished an alley-oop with emphasis. The Pistons scored the first 10 points of the quarter, and Kerr called a timeout before Golden State have even made a bucket. It took more than three minutes for the Warriors to score in the fourth, and nearly four-and-a-half minutes before they made a field goal.

By then, the outcome was long concluded, and all that was left was to see what the final score would be. It wasn’t as close as the 115-101 outcome, but a little garbage time preening will have that effect on a scoreboard.

The Warriors dramatically outshot the Pistons from deep, going 12-for-33 (36.4%) compared to Detroit’s 5-for-21 (23.8%). But everything else was one-sided. Detroit’s advantage in the paint was sizable — literally and figuratively — and led to a chasm separating the two teams’ marks from inside the arc. Golden State shot 53.5% (23-for-43) on twos, while the Pistons shot an absurd 61.5% (40-for-65).

Detroit scored an eye-popping 74 points in the paint, while the Warriors had just 44. Despite how much they played like an old-school, bruising, back-to-the-basket squad, they held an equally dominant advantage in fastbreak points: 19-5. And any chance that the Warriors had to keep things close evaporated with their 26 turnovers (which just 23 assists), while forcing 15.

Brandin Podziemski led the Warriors with 15 points, and also led the way with six rebounds (a mark that Yurtseven matched). Melton and Gary Payton II contributed 14 points, while Gui Santos had a well-balanced 13-5-5 line. Draymond Green led the playmaking with six assists, but was held scoreless against his hometown team.

The Warriors, who fell to 33-37, now get to face Jonathan Kuminga and the Atlanta Hawks in the second game of a back-to-back on Saturday night. It’s the penultimate game of the six-game road trip, and tips off at 5:00 p.m. PT.

MENLO PARK, Calif. (AP) — Hyo Joo Kim doubled her lead to four strokes Friday in the Fortinet Founders Cup, capping a late afternoon rally with a 6-foot birdie putt on the par-3 eighth.

A day after holing out for eagle on the par-5 18th hole for a 9-under 63 and a two-shot lead, Kim shot 70 in her afternoon round at tree-lined Sharon Heights.

Gabby Lopez was second at 7 under after a 70 in the morning session, with top-ranked Jeeno Thitikul and Nelly Korda in the group another shot back.

Playing the back nine first Friday, Kim bogeyed Nos. 11 and 17, then rebounded with birdies on 18, 1 and 3 and 8.

“The golf course is a bit hard,” Kim said. “The tee shots are hard to play and the shape of the course is a little tricky. I try my best to just try to do what I need to do.”

The South Korean player, ranked eighth in the world, won the 2015 Founders Cup in Phoenix for the second of her seven LPGA Tour titles.

“It’s been so long.” Kim said about the 2015 victory. “I think I won my rookie year. It was an unforgettable memory because it was my first win as a LPGA member.”

Coming off a third-place finish last month in Thailand, Kim is the defending champion next week in Arizona in the Ford Championship at Wild Horse Pass.

Lopez, from Mexico, had three front-nine birdies and dropped a stroke on the par-4 16th.

Thitikul rebounded from an opening 72 with a 66 in the afternoon. She opened with a bogey and birdied five of the next seven. On the back nine, she birdied 12 and 18.

“You have to be on the fairway first,” Thitkul said. “Find the fairway. The rough was rough.”

Korda, who skipped the Asia swing after winning the season opener in Florida, had a 68 in the morning to get to 6 under. She had late birdies on the Nos. 7 and 8.

“It’s tricky. You really have to shape it out here,” Korda said. “Some of the trees are a little bit intimidating and the greens are tough, too. Not only are they really undulated, but sometimes they’re a little bit harder to read, too.”

Minjee Lee (70), Aditi Ashok (66), Karis Davidson (68). Hye-Jin Choi (70) and Jin Hee Im (72) also were 6 under. Lee closed with a bogey after making four straight birdies.

“A little bit of things to clean up, but I think I’m in a pretty nice position going into the weekend,” Lee said.

The tournament began as a tribute to the 13 founders of the LPGA. It began in Arizona in 2011 and last year was the second event of the season and played in Florida. It has attracted eight of the top 10 players in the world ranking and kicks off a four-tournament stretch in the West ahead of the first major of the year.

___

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Earlier this season, Florida basketball 7-9 center Olivier Rioux became the tallest player to play in an NCAA basketball game.

He broke the mark of Manut Bol, who was 7-7 and played at Division II Bridgeport.

Rioux has appeared in 10 games this season, averaging 0.5 points and 0.4 rebounds a game in 14 total minutes.

Rioux made his on-court debut Nov. 6 in the final minutes of Florida’s 104-64 win over North Florida, the Gators student section began chanting for the redshirt freshman giant to enter the game and got its wish.

Florida’s student section chant for 7-foot-9 Oliver Rioux to get a chance to play in the game.

They get what they asked for and the crowd goes nuts. #Gatorspic.twitter.com/ku2CzeCjPu

— Andrew Abadie (@AndrewAbadie) November 7, 2025

After a few moments, Florida coach Todd Golden simply turned to his player and gave in to the crowd.

“Todd just looked at me,” Rioux said. “And I just (pretends to take shirt off) with my t-shirt."

“It felt great. The support from everybody was amazing. Even on the bench and even with the fans. Everybody supported me. I’m very grateful.”

Rioux’s moment came with 2:09 left in the game, which officially made him the tallest player in college history and left the official crowd of 10,065 erupting.

“It’s another day, I guess,” Rioux replied, what it meant for him to own that record.

Here's a video of Olivier Rioux dunking

Does he have to jump?

With this dunk, Olivier Rioux (7' 9") is the tallest player to EVER make a FG in Men's college basketball👏 @GatorsMBKpic.twitter.com/DRUQhEcCwu

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) December 18, 2025

How tall is Olivier Rioux?

The Florida redshirt freshman BIG man is 7 foot, 9 inches, making him the tallest player in NCAA basketball history.

Gainesville Sun reporter Andrew Abadie contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Olivier Rioux height: How tall is Florida Gators freshman big man?

Jalen Brunson and the Knicks were a misfiring mess all night, but apparently it’s never too late to get off the struggle bus against the pathetic Nets. 

An inexcusable defeat Friday night was only averted because Brooklyn couldn’t generate a potential game-winner at the buzzer — instead mismanaging an out-of-bounds play that left rookie Ben Saraf launching an airball — allowing the Knicks to escape Barclays Center with a 93-92 win that was more shameful than respectable. 

“They brought the fight to us. They came out, obviously they wanted to prove a point,” Knicks center Mitchell Robinson said. “Our approach got to be better. We can’t just look at their record and say, ‘We’ll whoop their ass.’ We just got to be better altogether. Until we figure that part out, then it’s going to be a long rollercoaster.” 

Brunson, who missed the previous game with a neck strain, scored just 17 points on 7-for-19 shooting overall, including 1-for-6 from beyond the arc. But he finally awoke in crunch time, dropping two of the night’s biggest buckets — a go-ahead pull-up jumper with 2:20 remaining and another one less than a minute later. 

He and Karl-Anthony Towns could’ve then put the win away, but they combined to miss three of four free throws in the final 10 seconds. 

So the Knicks (46-25) were lucky the Nets, who shot under 40 percent on the night, couldn’t score. And they left with two winning streaks intact — five straight victories overall, and 14 consecutive against the Nets. 

But it was ugly. 

“Jordi [Fernández, the Nets coach] outcoached me,” Mike Brown said. “They outplayed us in a lot of areas. And we were just able to find a way to get a win.” 

For the Knicks, who’ve had problems starting games, Friday night brought another discouraging first quarter. They managed a pitiful 14 points in that opening period and trailed by eight, saved only by Brooklyn’s ineptitude. 

On Sunday night, Brown ranted about his team’s lack of focus and energy immediately after tipoff. He was so upset after a nail-biting win over the short-handed Warriors that he stopped the tradition of awarding a defensive player of the game. 

But the message didn’t sink in for the crosstown game, and the Knicks seemed shocked by Brooklyn playing harder than usual. 

“This is probably the most physical they got with us,” Robinson said. “So you can’t take their record and say, this is an easy one. They’re grown-ass men just like us. They’re in the NBA just like us. So our approach got to be better and more respectful.” 

It got feisty in the second quarter, when Robinson, clearly upset with a previous possession, stepped over Brooklyn’s Nolan Traore under the basket. Robinson stood over Traore — a universal basketball sign of disrespect — and Brooklyn’s Danny Wolf stepped in before all parties were separated. 

Robinson was given a tech. So was Brooklyn’s Ziaire Williams. Then in the third quarter, OG Anunoby and Nic Claxton were whistled for techs after a shoving exchange. 

“You get physical back. That’s how it’s got to be,” Robinson said. “Got to stand on business about that.” 

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The Nets are operating with a talent deficit and under a front office prioritizing ping-pong balls over victories. Still, the Nets played as if pride were at stake Friday. 

Not only are the Knicks the crosstown rivals who entered Friday with a lengthy winning streak in head-to-head matchups, they also punked the Nets in a 54-point victory at the Garden in January. 

“The last one when we played at the Garden, it was embarrassing,” Wolf said. “So, it’s just a little bit of added extra motivation. And obviously I would like to say this isn’t how we wanted the season to go in terms of wins and losses, but each game we’ve got to prepare the same way. But obviously tonight there’s definitely some extra motivation to try to get this one.” 

Still, a tanking roster with tanking strategy can only hold off its destiny for so long.

And, not coincidentally, the Nets had rookies, a 10-day contract and two two-way contract players on the court down the stretch when they gave up the game, like they usually do.