Knicks waste Carmelo Anthony's big night, get run over by Russell Westbrook
Feb 15, 2017; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) drives to the basket in front of New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony (7) during the fourth quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

A great scoring performance from Carmelo Anthony, maybe his last with the New York Knicks, was ruined by bad defense and Russell Westbrook.

  • Oklahoma City Thunder 116 (32-25)
  • New York Knicks 105 (23-34)
  • NBA, Final, Box Score
  • Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

The New York Knicks exploded on offense in the first quarter opening the game on a 16-2 run. It looked like the momentum from their win against the San Antonio Spurs had built up some confidence inside a formerly pathetic team. Carmelo Anthony scored 19 points in the first quarter on 7 of 8 shooting. The Knicks were ahead 39-27, and things were looking up.

Predictably, it all fell apart. The Knicks were outscored 89-66 over the next 36 minutes, and Anthony shot 4 of 12 and mustered up only 11 points for the rest of the night. He finished with a grant total of 30 though, so you can’t put this one on him. This was on the defense.

Russell Westbrook steamrolled the Knicks on Wednesday night. He recorded his 27th triple-double of the season with 6:57 remaining in the third quarter. Westbrook’s trend of ridiculous stat lines continued with 38 points, 14 rebounds, and 12 assists. He did whatever he wanted to New York’s alleged defense. Yes, it’s Russell Westbrook, but at least make him work for it. It was too easy out there for him tonight.

Before tip-off of tonight’s game, Clyde Frazier implied it was on the Knicks to prove that Sunday’s win against the Spurs wasn’t an aberration. Now we know that’s exactly what it was. A solid effort for 48 minutes from this team is something that might not happen again this season.

Key Player

Kristaps Porzingis was 4 of 13 shooting and finished with just 11 points in 33 minutes of action. He continues to struggle.

Key Stat

Kyle O’Quinn was the only Knick who finished with a positive +/-. That’s some bad defense.