Knicks find some offense, beat winless Nets 93-89

By BRIAN MAHONEY, AP Basketball Writer Oct 16, 10:50 pm EDT

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NEW YORK (AP)—David Lee(notes) had 20 points and 14 rebounds, and the New York Knicks got their offense untracked long enough for a 93-89 preseason victory over the winless New Jersey Nets on Friday night.

Wilson Chandler(notes) added 16 points for the Knicks (2-2), who beat the Nets for the second time in the preseason. Nate Robinson(notes), making his first exhibition start, scored 15 points for New York.

Yi Jianlian(notes) had 21 points and 11 rebounds for the Nets (0-5), who were without All-Star point guard Devin Harris(notes) because of a strained right groin. Rookie Terrence Williams(notes) also scored 21 points and Courtney Lee(notes) had 17.

New York bounced back after miserable offensive performances while losing its last two games. The Knicks shot under 38 percent in each, including a 31 percent showing in 93-85 loss to Philadelphia on Tuesday.

But after shooting 9 of 27 from the field and falling behind 29-23 after one quarter, they hit 22 of 40 shots over the middle two periods, repeatedly confusing the Nets with pick-and-rolls.

“The big change tonight was that we hit some shots from the outside and that opened up things in the pick-and-roll,” Lee said. “It opened up the whole rest of our game.”

New Jersey coach Lawrence Frank burned two timeouts in the first 5 minutes of the second half, looking disgusted following defensive breakdowns that led to layups by Jared Jeffries(notes).

Playing without leading scorer Al Harrington(notes) (bruised left knee), the Knicks outscored the Nets 29-15 in the second quarter to take an eight-point halftime lead, then used a 13-2 spurt midway through the third to extend it to 73-54.

“I thought we played pretty good defense the whole way through,” Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni said. “They didn’t have Devin Harris and we hit a spurt where we made shots and that’s what we were talking about. We just hung in there defensively until I guess it was probably second quarter with about 5 or 6 minutes where we made about five or six in a row and got an eight-point lead and held it there afterwards.”

The Knicks led 75-59 after three but went cold again in the fourth as the Nets pulled within single digits. New York finished at 40 percent after struggling with mostly reserves on the court in the final period.

Chris Douglas-Roberts(notes) scored 13 points for the Nets before leaving with a strained neck. X-rays were negative.

“I’m going to ice it down, do what I have to do tonight, see how it feels in the morning, but I don’t want to be missing anything,” Douglas-Roberts said.

The Nets shot 38 percent, with Bobby Simmons(notes) 0 for 8, Trenton Hassell(notes) 0 for 5 and Rafer Alston(notes) 0 for 4.

The Knicks beat the Nets 115-107 on Oct. 4 in Albany in both teams’ preseason opener. They meet again next Wednesday in Newark.

Updated Oct 16, 10:50 pm EDT
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10 Comments

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  1. Steven
    10. Posted by Steven Sun Oct 18 5:48pm EDT

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    50 cent loves gossip girl he has never miss a eposide of it that just shows what a fan he is i am proud of you are you all proud of him
  2. Jesse
    9. Posted by Jesse Sun Oct 18 2:18am EDT

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    What's the deal with Cuttino Mobley. Is he or is he not on the active roster? Is he injured? What gives?
  3. JOSE
    8. Posted by JOSE Sat Oct 17 10:01pm EDT

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    Well lets look at the bright side. The Nets have a very good chance of getting the number one draft pick next year.
  4. Billy
    7. Posted by Billy Sat Oct 17 12:34pm EDT

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    The Knicks have 2 big needs right now. That would be point guard and center. Duhon simply will not do at the pg position and they need a legit big man plugging the hole in the middle.
  5. Billy
    6. Posted by Billy Sat Oct 17 12:30pm EDT

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    David Lee looked awesome in that game. He has a decent outside shot now to go along with his rebounding skills. He will become an allstar. Nate Robinson has some great moves and gives the Knicks a solid scoring threat. Wilson Chandler looks like he can develop into a solid scoring forward. i was really impressed with his strength and his moves to the basket. Only his second year, but he will become a dominant player. Danilo also looks good and can be a solid scorer. Jarred Jeffries is a big surprise for me. He has improved his scoring ability and is very athletic. Can be a very good player in the league. Overall, the Knicks are a much improved team and I look for them to win a lot more games than they have in the past. They are in a tough division however so I'm not sure where they will finish.
  6. king
    5. Posted by king Sat Oct 17 9:21am EDT

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    i beleive if the knicks start nate ,duhon,harrington ,lee and milicic and see what tha bring for a min with chandler the first guy off the bench wit the rest of the crew and they create a solid chemistry they should be a sleeper this year.
  7. Take No Prisoners
    4. Posted by Take No Prisoners Sat Oct 17 7:08am EDT

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    Apparently, the only team we'll be able to beat this season is NJ. Man' I really wish they would have drafted Lopez, instead of the bad back, legendary shooter, Gallinari that D talked so highly about! The guy had five blocked shots last night. A sorely needed defensive center if ever there was one.

    Don't expect much from this bunch. And the Nets need to get into Brooklyn as soon as possible.
  8. slimey
    3. Posted by slimey Sat Oct 17 12:58am EDT

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    my challenge to you is a hundred a month, dont let tony douglas get more tthan you either.it seems you already got confortable with that
  9. slimey
    2. Posted by slimey Sat Oct 17 12:44am EDT

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    duhon got 1 free throw attempt all night , lets see how long into the season it will take to get 100
  10. slimey
    1. Posted by slimey Sat Oct 17 12:38am EDT

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    now lets get curry in there,so he can get used to fans booing him for 20 games or til he becomes a nightmare for opposing defenses
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Top Performers

 Top Performers
 New Jersey
Y. Jianlian Yi Jianlian
7-14,  21 Pts
11 Rebs, 0 Assists
 New York
D. Lee David Lee
9-14,  20 Pts
14 Rebs, 2 Assists

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