Fans return to Madison Square Garden but Knicks fall to Warriors, 114-106

NEW YORK — The fans returned to see something more familiar: a Knicks loss.

Steph Curry dropped 37 points in front of the sparse Madison Square Garden crowd, while RJ Barrett continued his funk as the Knicks fell to the Warriors on Tuesday, 114-106. The Knicks (15-17), who snapped a two-game winning streak, kept it close throughout and tied the score with about four minutes remaining.

But the Knicks’ offense went into the freezer, and Curry’s and-1 runner gave Golden State a five-point edge with 1:22 left, proving to be the game’s most pivotal basket.

Curry hit half of his 14 3-point attempts and shot 12 for 12 from the foul line. Barrett, on the other hand, managed just four points with three turnovers while missing eight of his nine shots. He also bricked a free throw that would’ve cut New York’s deficit to 1 with 1:26 left.

Barrett’s minutes have been reduced lately, and he only played five in the fourth quarter Tuesday.

“Whatever the team needs I’m good,” Barrett repeated his canned answer.

The fans were back at limited capacity, with some seated as close as about 10 feet from the court. The virus certainly isn’t dead but New York has now allowed for such indoor gatherings and MSG took full advantage. The roughly 2,000 fans cheered at volumes greater than their numbers in the beginning, as if trying to make up for the lost time. It had been nearly a year since fans were allowed at MSG, with NYC suffering almost 30,000 documented COVID-19-related deaths since March.

“It means a lot,” Julius Randle said. “It’s been a rough year since the last time we had fans. It’s been tough on the city. We know how important the fans are to the city of New York. We understand what we mean to the city. For them to be a part of what we’re doing and what we’re experiencing as a team, and what we’re building would be amazing. So getting them back here I’m sure they appreciate it, we appreciate it too.”

Randle, fresh off being named to the All-Star Game, was greeted with “MVP” chants. He finished with 25 points, 10 boards and seven assists but was ejected at the end following two technical fouls.

Tom Thibodeau called the fans’ presence “the first step back to normalcy.” But then the Knicks reverted to their less desirable normal.

“To have your family come but also more important, it’s our fans. We’re excited about that and it will grow,” the coach said. “Our league and organization have put all the safety protocols in place. Safety has to come first but we’re excited about having the opportunity to have our fans here.