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On Wednesday night, the Brooklyn Nets had a game to win. It was the game to unite both sides of the aisle, whether you believe rooting for your favorite team to lose is a morally corrosive practice that leaves stains on the heart of your fandom or if you believe more in the marriage of fandom and pragmatism.

Not only did they have the Knicks in MSG, but they had a Knicks team with water creeping into their lungs: 7-11 since winning the NBA Cup and entering Wednesday on a 2-9 stretch. If there’s not full-blown panic over in Manhattanites, it’s just around the corner, with beat writers reporting that the team hasn’t fully bought into their roles and advocating for a major shake-up at the trade deadline.

The Nets don’t own the Knicks first-round pick this year — they do in odd-numbered years — but that hardly mattered on Wednesday. Brooklyn has shorted New York’s long-term future, but in the short-term, they had a chance to plunge the Knicks further into disarray on Wednesday. Whether you hate the blue-and-orange or don’t pay them any mind, you can’t deny the hilarity of a 12-29 team handing them their 10th loss in 12 games, right in the middle of a championship-or-bust season.

Anyway, that’s not what happened. The Knicks secured their largest margin of victory in franchise history. Seriously. Here’s a brief list of stuff that happened:

• Landry Shamet shot 6-of-6 from deep
• The Nets shot 10-of-27 in the paint
• Mike Brown challenged a call up by 48
• Mike Brown lost that challenge
• The Nets (with 11 points to spare) scored the fewest points by an NBA team in a game this season
• Thanks to a 5-0 run to close the game, the Nets avoided the worst margin of defeat in franchise history
• Why are you still reading this?

Let’s allot some brief space for Ziaire Williams, the only Net who, by any measure, played well. He (with some help from Day’Ron Sharpe) desperately tried to raise Brooklyn’s energy level in the first half, deflecting pass after pass and applying ball pressure to Jalen Brunson, who was otherwise seeing cones. Williams scored 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting with just a rebound and a steal, but he was the only one who matched New York’s verve.

Every other aspect of these 48 minutes was depressing. Michael Porter Jr. continued his cool-streak with a 4-of-14 performance, Egor Dëmin hit two quick threes before air-balling a floater by a foot, scoring zero points the rest of the way. Nolan Traore had a 0/1/3 line with three turnovers and Danny Wolf got owned by Deuce McBride at the rim. Terance Mann, Jalen Wilson, and Tyrese Martin — all of whom were initially out of the rotation — entered early in the fourth quarter, only for the Nets to go scoreless until the 5:38 mark.

“I felt like the little stuff that we said we wanted to do, we didn’t do,” said Noah Clowney postgame. “Like, we know they’re gonna switch, Josh Hart and OG are gonna switch, things like that. We need to get Brunson in the action because he’s not gonna switch, so there’s our advantage and play off of that. Stuff like that, offensively, we didn’t do it and defensively it was disastrous. We didn’t get back for the first part, they lit our ass up from three, had everything they wanted.

Jordi Fernández fell on the sword postgame: “This was a tough one, but show up the next day and have positive energy and work and get better and go out there and compete. I have to help them better … players are not responsible for it, so I got to make sure that they understand the values that we have and how we want to play, and we’ll work together.”

Drake Powell disagreed, predictably: “Yeah, 100% don’t agree. I think, you know, we’re the ones that are out there playing, making decisions, and I think it’s ultimately on us as a team.”

Maybe rooting for losses and encouraging a tank isn’t about pragmatism. Maybe it’s a defense mechanism. The Brooklyn Nets — scratch that — Nets fans had a rare opportunity on Wednesday to get a win without worrying about a ping-pong ball, to be a true thorn in the Knicks’ side. With that in mind, the second-worst loss in franchise history tastes even more bitter.

Oh well. At least they’re tanking. One year and five days ago, the Brooklyn Nets lost by a franchise-record 59 points to the Los Angeles Clippers, and it hardly mattered. They would soon return home, win six out of seven games, and later make five first-round draft picks who will either become good NBA players or not, regardless of Wednesday’s humiliation ritual.

“This doesn’t stop the plan that we have. It’s just, obviously, a tough experience to go through.” — Jordi Fernández.

Final Score: Brooklyn Nets 120, New York Knicks 66

Milestone Watch

• The 54-point margin of defeat is the second-largest in Nets history, slightly more respectable than the aforementioned 59-point drubbing at the hands of the Clippers last season.
• In each of the last three seasons, Brooklyn has lost a game by 50+ points, starting with the rout that got Jacque Vaughn canned. The Portland Trail Blazers, from 2021-2024, are the only other franchise to accomplish this feat.

MPJ injury update

Gotta love how candid Michael Porter Jr. is with the media. Brooklyn’s leading scorer offered up — unprompted — that he’s been dealing with an MCL sprain since getting tangled up with Wendell Carter Jr. in Brooklyn’s loss to the Orlando Magic. Now, he’s only missed two games since then, and they were both on the front-end of a back-to-back, so he and Jordi Fernández don’t believe it’s anything to worry about.

“He had some discomfort, but he kept playing. He’s played all the way through,” Fernandez said. “We value our players’ health, and if it were something that didn’t allow him to play, we would do whatever it takes to figure that out. But he’s played, so I don’t think I have anything else to say from that.”

Brooklyn has a strong incentive to tank this season, not to mention the trade rumors swirling around Porter Jr. If it was a serious injury, you’d have to believe he wouldn’t be playing through it, but perhaps it’s contributing in some small way to his relative struggles of late. Since the Orlando loss, he’s shooting 42% from the floor and 33% from deep.

Next Up

The schedule doesn’t get any easier, as the 27-16 Boston Celtics, sitting in second place in the Eastern Conference, come to town. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday evening.

• Boxscore: Brooklyn Nets 120, New York Knicks 66 – NBA
• Game Highlights: Brooklyn Nets 120, New York Knicks 66 (Video) – NBA
• Jordi Fernandez PostGame Interview (Video) – YES Network
• Drake Powell PostGame Interview (Video) – YES Network
• Noah Clowney PostGame Interview (Video) – YES Network
• Knicks get back on track with biggest win in their history, beating Brooklyn by 54 points – AP
• Knicks snap losing streak with historic beatdown of Nets – Reuters
• Knicks destroy Nets in historic laugher to snap four-game losing skid – Jared Schwartz – New York Post
• Michael Porter Jr.’s knee issue isn’t only reason for his Nets production dip as trade deadline looms ($) – Brian Lewis – New York Post
• Knicks blitz Nets early, snap four-game skid in historic fashion at Madison Square Garden ($) -C.J. Holmes – New York Daily News
• Nets’ Michael Porter Jr. playing through minor MCL sprain ($) – C.J. Holmes – New York Daily News
• Ziaire Williams’ ‘superpower’ is showing up again for the Nets ($) – C.J. Holmes – New York Daily News
• Knicks buy themselves more time in historic win over Nets ($) – Kristian Winfield – New York Daily News
• Josh Hart denies Knicks players-only meeting: ‘Y’all dragging it.’ ($) – Kristian Winfield – New York Daily News
• Nets player grades following Wednesday’s 120-66 loss at the Knicks – Sharif Phillips-Keaton – USA TODAY

On Monday, the Knicks (26*-18) were embarrassed by the Dallas Mavericks in their fourth-straight loss. That capped an awful 2-9 stretch that had us reeling. Dropping another one, to the Brooklyn Nets (12-30) no less, would have unleashed madness and mayhem upon the city. Thus, obliged to do their civic duty, New York opened up their biggest can of whup-ass of the season (apparently ever) and pulverized Brooklyn at Madison Square Garden, 120-66.

That, my friends, is a record for New York—the largest margin of victory in team history.

The Knicks finally started a game with fire and desire. It’s been weeks since they played with such intensity of pace and defense. Led by Karl-Anthony Towns, they attacked Brooklyn’s front court relentlessly; of their first 18 points, eight came in the paint and five from the free throw line. By the middle of the frame, they had held the Nets to six points and ripped off 14 unanswered points.

Through the quarter, Jalen Brunson scored 11 points and set the pace for the starting five. New York got nice bench support, too. Mitchell Robinson was a monster, recording four rebounds, three points, a steal, and a block in five minutes, while Landry Shamet made both three-point attempts, then added a steal and an assist. New York shot 67% from the floor, crushed the glass (14–5), and moved the ball well (nine assists). Their rivals tried a diet of long, contested threes and missed 67% of them. When 12 minutes were up, New York sat on a 38-20 lead.

In Q2, the thrashing continued as the home team went up by 27 and never let Brooklyn get within 15. Focused defense forced the Nets into seven first-half turnovers and squandered possessions. Michael Porter, Jr. supplied a three, a layup, and a trip to the line, but that was the extent of an offense that managed just 18 points in the quarter. Robinson returned to the fray for six more minutes of hellraising, while Bridges played an active role on both ends of the court. Completing their best defensive first half of the year, New York entered intermission ahead, 59–38.

Through the half, Brooklyn converted barely a third of their shots, while the Knicks shot 55% overall and 50% from deep. The home team ruled the backboard (outrebounding the Nets 28–16), won the paint 22–14, and had a 14–4 edge in fast-break points. Time and again, they attacked before the Nets could set their defense and looked vastly more engaged than they did on Monday. Brunson led all scorers with 12 points, and Porter had nine for the villains.

Proving their first half energy was no fluke, the ‘Bockers came banging out of the locker room with a 10-6 run to reach 70 points. By the middle of the frame, they’d gone up by 30. A little later, it was 37. Ziaire Williams scored five straight for Brooklyn while the Knicks caught their breath, but our heroes still carried an 88-56 advantage into the final frame.

A 16-0 stretch to start the fourth gave New York a 48-point lead, their largest of not just the night, not just the season, but in franchise history. Some of those points came from Shamet, who made all six of his three-point attempts tonight. Meanwhile, Brooklyn missed their first eight shots of the quarter and, with seven minutes to go, they looked impatient for the buzzer. Tyrese Martin hit a 31-foot three, Day’Ron Sharpe chipped in with two free throws, Terrence Mann scored a layup, and Danny Wolf drained a longball as the clock wound down. That’s it. Those were the only Nets buckets in a fourth quarter that New York won 32-10.

Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 20 points and five assists. Towns was a force in limited minutes, pouring in 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting while grabbing eight rebounds. Josh Hart delivered one of his most complete all-around games—11 points on a perfect 5-for-5 and nine rebounds—while Mikal Bridges pitched in 11 points and four assists. OG Anunoby didn’t need to score much but finished a +28.

Everybody got the memo! New York’s bench showed up, too. Miles McBride exploded for 14 points, four assists, and a game-best +34. Shamet delivered 18 points on 6-of-7 shooting and scorching from deep. Mitch controlled the paint with seven points, seven rebounds, and two blocks, while Mohamed Diawara provided some good minutes, too.

KAT had committed five fouls in each of his last four games. Consider that streak over. And so ends the skid! With tonight’s win, the Knicks snapped a four-game losing streak and avoided a nuclear meltdown. Up next, Professor Miranda will summon his brilliance to the page for you lucky bums. As for New York, they’ll travel to Philadelphia for a matinee on Saturday. Storm’s comin’. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.

Box Score

* Should be one more, but the Cup final doesn’t count.

The Cleveland Cavaliers gave us all a scare with a 94-87 win over the Charlotte Hornets. Let’s see who won and lost the game.

WINNER – Evan Mobley’s First Half

This was a tale of two halves for Mobley.

Mobley had the highest scoring game of his career last season when he hung 41 points on the Hornets. He didn’t replicate that scoring outburst tonight, mainly because he totally disappeared in the second half, but he had the confidence and demeanor of a player who could get whatever he wanted in the first half.

The first half was the Mobley show. He opened the game with a pair of aggressive drives and had a double-double before the end of the second quarter. This block leading into a spinning dunk tells you everything you need to know. Mobley was everywhere.

How Mobley scored those points in the first half is important.

Elite NBA players understand where their comfort zones are and how to reach them. The best scorers will relentlessly work to hit their sweet spots. Think of Nikola Jokic with his back to the basket, or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander getting to the mid-range fallaway.

Mobley might not be in the same class offensively as SGA or Jokic. But he’s talented enough to have certain spots on the floor where he can dominate. Space out and get Mobley the ball moving downhill. That’s a blueprint that’s easy enough to follow. When you steer the offense in that direction, all that’s left is for Mobley to seize the opportunity. He did so in the first and second quarters.

And then the second half happened…

LOSER – That Second Half

Do you like turnovers? How about unfocused offense and blown defensive rotations?

The Cavs took everything that worked in the first half and tossed it out the window during the second half. We knew the Hornets would make a run at some point. Every NBA team does. But this game had no business being a nail-biter during the fourth quarter. Not when Cleveland already had the answers to the test.

Mobley had 13 points in the first half. He had just 1 point on two attempts in the second. It’s a trend that’s become all too familiar (and incredibly frustrating).

But it was more than Mobley. The Cavs became a turnover machine in the second half. Careless passes, forced entries. Just a general lack of focus that’s hard to explain when the team had looked totally dialed in for the first 24 minutes. The Cavs finished with 20+ turnovers for the second game in a row.

Again, I want to reiterate the adage, ‘it’s a game of runs’. You will rarely see a team dominate another for 48 full minutes. Especially not in the modern NBA when three-point shooting can swing a game’s momentum in seconds. So, it’s worth keeping this in mind when looking at the big picture, considering Cleveland held onto the win. But I still don’t think the Cavs should be happy about how much ground they conceded in the second half.

And they definitely shouldn’t be happy that Mobley became a non-factor in the third and fourth quarters.

WINNER – Defensive Effort

Alright, now let’s get back to the good stuff.

You might not have guessed this, but Charlotte entered this game with the second-best offense in the NBA over the last two weeks. They’ve been scoring in bunches and pulling off some impressive wins, including efforts against the OKC Thunder and LA Lakers.

That’s what made the first half of this game so impressive for the Cavs, who have been 24th in defensive rating during this same stretch.

Charlotte had 32 points at halftime after scoring only 12 points in the second quarter. They’d eventually find their groove and respond with a stronger second half — cutting the deficit all the way down to four points. But the Cavs had built a big enough cushion to hang on in the end. Charlotte still ended the game with only 87 points, which is a huge win for the Cavaliers’ defense.

Effort and communication are the keys to any good defense. You can’t be very good without either one. The Cavs checked both boxes forthe first half of tonight, playing hard and defending on a string. That wound up being just enough.

WINNER – Larry Nance Jr.

This one will be quick.

Nance played his first meaningful minutes since November after missing multiple weeks with a calf injury, then earning a few DNP-CD’s since being cleared to return. The Cavs have taken a cautious approach with putting him back into the lineup, but it paid off tonight.

This wasn’t a world-beating performance or anything. It was fairly average. But seeing Nance back on the floor, and more importantly, being a somewhat helpful player, was nice to see.

Shout out to Larry.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gift Uchenna had 22 points and 14 rebounds, Kyrah Daniels added 19 points, and Wisconsin defeated No. 24 Nebraska 63-60 on Wednesday night.

Daniels hit a 3-pointer to tie the score at 60 with 1:54 remaining in the fourth quarter and the go-ahead free throw 50 seconds later. After a Nebraska turnover, Uchenna's layup made it 63-60 with 53 seconds left and neither team scored again.

The Cornhuskers led by five points with 3:45 remaining in the game but made only 1 of 7 shots the rest of the way and 2 of their last 12.

Ronnie Porter added 10 points for the Badgers (13-7, 5-4 Big Ten), who improved to 11-1 at home. Destiny Howell, who scored 39 points in a 94-92 double-overtime win over Oregon on Sunday, was in foul trouble for much of the game and did not score.

Eliza Maupin scored 13 points and Britt Prince had 11 for Nebraska (14-5, 3-5).

Uchenna had 18 points and 10 rebounds in the first half and Wisconsin led 38-25 at the break.

After shooting 37% in the first half, Nebraska forced eight turnovers and limited Wisconsin to five shots in the first seven minutes of the third quarter. Nebraska outscored Wisconsin 22-7 in the period and took a 47-45 lead into the fourth quarter.

Nebraska: at home against Illinois on Saturday

Wisconsin: at Minnesota on Sunday

___

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The Knicks defeated the Brooklyn Nets 120-66 on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden. 

Here are some takeaways...

- Sure, playing the Nets helps, but the Knicks finally looked like the Knicks again tonight. New York came out much more energized following their players-only meeting and were able to cruise their way to their 13th-consecutive victory over their rebuilding crosstown rivals.

- New York got off to a very efficient start, knocking down six of their first nine shots, and they used a pair of runs (14-0, 14-3) to open a double-digit advantage, which they never looked back from. Jalen Brunson led the way with 11 first-quarter points, but most encouraging, the Knicks held the Nets to just 20 points over the first 12 minutes. 

- The strong play continued into the second quarter, as New York's suffocating defense and hot shooting helped them stretch the lead out past 20 points just a few minutes in. OG Anunoby had a fastbreak slam after Brooklyn's fifth turnover of the game and Karl-Anthony Towns continued his strong start, stretching his total to 10 points. 

Both Towns and Mitchell Robinson did, however, put themselves in early foul trouble after picking up three apiece.

- The Knicks carried a 22-point advantage into the break, and they held the Nets to just 38 points, marking their best defensive half of the season. Brooklyn knocked down just five of their 20 three-point attempts through two quarters, and they didn't have a single player in double figures. 

New York outrebounded the Nets 28-16 and had 14 fastbreak points off of seven turnovers. 

- The Knicks remained in control coming out of the break, as all five of their starters found the bottom of the bucket, and they knocked down six of their first seven shots from the field to begin the half. Mikal Bridges pushed his way into double figures minutes into the third quarter after scoring just 10 points in total the last time out against Phoenix. 

- Landry Shamet continued his hot shooting since returning from his shoulder injury. The veteran sharpshooter knocked down all six of the three-pointers he attempted on the night, leaving him just two points shy of Brunson's game-high (20). The lead was pushed up to as much as 32 at the end of three. 

Both teams emptied their benches early in the fourth quarter and the rout stretched out to 54 points, the largest margin of victory in franchise history. 

- Brunson led all scorers with 20 points despite making just one of eight threes. Towns had 14 points and eight boards, Bridges had 11 points against his former team, and McBride chipped in 14 points off the bench. Tyler Kolek (6 points), Mohamed Diawara (5 points), and Ariel Hukporti (four boards) took advantage of their garbage time minutes. 

- Michael Porter Jr. and Ziare Williams were the only two to crack double digits for Brooklyn. 

Game MVP: Landry Shamet

Shamet continues to dominate from downtown since returning from injury. 

Highlights

Strong start for KAT 💪 pic.twitter.com/ZzJLPFqkQE

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) January 22, 2026

Mitchell Robinson with the putback slam 😤 pic.twitter.com/7VGpbCnSP8

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) January 22, 2026

B2B Landry Shamet threes 3️⃣ pic.twitter.com/TbZaS9JcuE

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) January 22, 2026

Landry steal ➡️ OG slam pic.twitter.com/XFECLTwFXG

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) January 22, 2026

KAT triple 🔥 pic.twitter.com/yFaI7yJCXd

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) January 22, 2026

What's next

The Knicks will look to build off this strong performance as they head to Philadelphia for a meeting with the 76ers on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. 

The Cleveland Cavaliers made this one more stressful than it should have been. They led the Charlotte Hornets 56-32 at halftime, before Charlotte cut the lead to 4 points in the fourth quarter.

Cleveland eventually closed the door and secured their 25th win of the season. But, as I said, it felt less satisfying than you’d have liked.

The Hornets have been better than their record recently. They entered the night with the league’s second-best offense over the last two weeks, while Cleveland had the 24th-best defense during this same stretch. That felt like a combination that could have burned the Cavs tonight. But they began the game with the appropriate energy on defense, holding the Hornets to just 12 points in the second quarter.

That focus wouldnt’ last all 48 minutes. The Cavs slipped in the second half and allowed the Hornets to go on a big run. But they found their footing and got enough stops in the end to stave off a disastrous collapse.

Evan Mobley started the game hot. He had 13 points and 11 rebounds at halftime after a handful of jaw-dropping dunks. As is the theme, this aggression didn’t carry over to the final two quarters. Mobley finished with just 14 points in an otherwise solid performance.

Charlotte was led by Brandon Miller with 24 points. Lamelo Ball had a rough night, shooting 0-10 from deep and 1-15 from the floor overall.

Donovan Mitchell had 24 points on 8-20 shooting. It wasn’t a great night for Mitchell, as his 8 turnovers added fuel to Charlotte’s fire. It’s clear the Cavs are still missing Darius Garland’s efficient command of the offense.

The Cavs are back at home this weekend with a game versus the Sacramento Kings before going on the road for a matchup against the Orlando Magic.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Denzel Aberdeen scored 19 points, Collin Chandler and Otega Oweh each had 18 points, and Kentucky took down Texas 85-80 on Wednesday night.

Oweh reached double-figures for the 22nd straight game, a streak dating to last season, and Chandler reached a career-high, surpassing his 15 scored in November's season-opener against Nicholls.

The Wildcats (13-6, 4-2 Southeastern Conference) battled back-and-forth with Texas, as the game featured 11 lead changes. After heading to the locker rooms tied at 40, Kentucky took the lead for good midway through the second half during a 6-0 run and closed on a 7-2 run to secure the victory.

Andrija Jelavic and Chandler each hauled in a team-high seven rebounds, and Kentucky narrowly won the glass battle 36-34. Malachi Moreno led with six assists.

Dailyn Swain scored 29 points on 10-for-16 shooting for the Longhorns (11-8, 2-4), his third game with 20 or more points this season. Matas Vokietaitis had a 15-point, 11-rebound double-double.

Free throws made the difference for the Wildcats, converting on 30 of their 35 attempts. Texas made 18 of 20.

Kentucky hosts Ole Miss on Saturday.

Texas hosts No. 21 Georgia on Saturday.

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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Kierra Wheeler scored 16 points and No. 22 West Virginia rallied in the fourth quarter to defeat Arizona State 53-43 on Wednesday night.

Arizona State led 37-34 through three quarters and the score was tied at 41 with 4 minutes left in the fourth quarter. A 3-pointer by Sydney Shaw gave the Mountaineers a 44-41 lead with 2:45 remaining. Jordan Harrison added a free throw and Wheeler scored in the paint for a 47-41 lead.

McKinna Brackens hit a jumper for the Sun Devils but it was their only made basket in nine attempts in the final 4 minutes. West Virginia closed it out at the line, making 7 of 9 free throws in the last minute.

Shaw scored 11 points and Gia Cooke had 10 for West Virginia (16-4, 6-2 Big 12).

Brackens and Gabby Elliott led Arizona State (17-3, 4-3) with 15 points each.

Arizona State battled back from a six-point first-quarter deficit to trail 13-12 after one. West Virginia hit three 3-pointers early in the second quarter and a layup by Sydney Woodley gave the Mountaineers a 25-15 lead with 3 1/2 minutes left in the quarter. Arizona State did not allow a point for the remainder of the half and trailed only 25-24 at halftime.

Arizona State extended the run to 13 points for a 28-25 lead a couple of minutes into the third. The Sun Devils' lead was 37-29 with about a minute remaining in the third, then West Virginia closed to within three points at the end of the quarter.

West Virginia: At BYU on Saturday.

Arizona State: At Cincinnati on Saturday.

___

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