Posted on January 16, 2008

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Knicks See Oz, Blast Wizards

NEW YORK – The secret can now be revealed. Do not play against the Knicks if there is a hint of road weariness, or if a home-and-home series with the league-leading Boston Celtics was in the immediate past.

Buoyed by their second consecutive 20-point lead in as many games, New York ran past the Washington Wizards, 105-93, at the Garden last night. This was the first time the Knicks [11-26] have won two in a row since November 24-26, when they knocked off Chicago and Utah on their fabled floor.

Jamal Crawford, with 29 points, led six New York players in double figures; it was the seventh time this season that six members of the team have scored ten or more points in one game.

“When we share the basketball, and pass to the open man,” said Isiah Thomas, “it becomes a very simple game. It’s a beautiful game to watch when it’s played that way. We have good offensive players and sometimes, when there’s a rut, players think they can do it by themselves.

“But, they need to rely on their teammates. We’ve played with great honesty over the last five or six games, and now we have to build trust upon that honesty. And that comes with sharing the basketball.”

The Knicks succeeded on that level, as they dished for 26 assists, which were just two away from matching their season high, set against the Chicago Bulls on January 8. Over the previous two games, New York has passed for 41 assists.

Zach Randolph, with 14 points and 11 boards, played another solid game on the frontline. Quentin Richardson hit five of his first six shots, and finished with 13 points. Eddy Curry and Fred Jones each scored 10. It was just the third time this season that each of the Knicks’ starters scored in double figures.

Nate Robinson [14 points, eight assists] and Rolando Balkman [nine points, nine rebounds] sparked the bench scoring, and David Lee added seven rebounds to the winning effort.

Thomas, confronted with the question of ball distribution, simply replied, “We have some complicated personalities. I have to blend personalities, and convince my team that, if they play together, they will win. That is what coaching is all about.

“Most of the them have got to where they are as individuals. We want to play for the New York Knicks, and not the name of the back of the shirt. Sounds like a high school interview, right? That’s really the nuts and bolts of basketball.”

The Knicks, playing without Stephon Marbury -who will probably require surgery as the result of bone spurs in his left ankle- forged to a 96-85 advantage with 5:08 remaining in the game. Robinson, responding to Caron Butler 48th consecutive free throw, and three-point play, nailed a trey for the crushing basket.

Butler led the visitors with 24, and added eight rebounds. Antawn Jamison fiished with with 21 and eight, and Roger Mason contributed 20.

Earlier, Crawford’s string of 35 straight [six shy of Latrell Sprewell’s team record] ended with a miss on his first attempt of the third quarter.

But, because Washington [20-17] could only get as close to nine after that, New York was able to finish them off with a 10-for-15 quarter. Lee’s reverse jam, and subsequent three-point play, with :21.5 on the clock, merely put an exclamation point of the victory.

“There’s a good team in here somewhere,” Thomas said, “We just have to find it.’

The Wizards, who had won three consecutive games, have become a good team, in spite of Gilbert Arenas lengthy absence following surgery on November 21 to repair an injured left knee. The typical fan would think that Washington would crumble without Agent Zero, the flamboyant shooting guard, who was the NBA’s third-best scorer last season with better than 28 points per game.

But, since Arenas last played on November 16 against Minnesota, the Wizards have won 17 of their last 28 games, including a recent home-and-home conquest of the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Celtics, to claim second place in the Southeast Division, a mere 1½ games behind the Orlando Magic.

The Knicks jetted to a 41-19 lead, largely built on their 30-14 first quarter advantage. After Jamison tallied the game’s first basket eight seconds in, Crawford hit a three following a series of passes; that sequence represented, perhaps, the best ball movement of the season. Richardson sandwiched four jumpers around Jones’ consecutive treys, and the Knicks were off and running, 17-5.

Randolph was the beneficiary of an excellent hustle play by Lee with :38 seconds remaining, as New York built to a 30-12 margin. Lee’s blind over the shoulder pass, as he dipped into the front row of seats, was fielded by Robinson, standing on the opposite side of the paint. The diminutive guard, then, deftly passed to Randolph, cutting into the lane.

But, a 22-10 run by Washington over the final 5:45 –with Oleksiy Pecherv nailing a trio of three-pointers- closed out the 2nd quarter. After missing 29 of their first 45 shots [35.6%], the Wizards hit 10 of 18 [55.6%] during the next twelve minutes.

Washington, again, threatened in the third quarter, as the Knicks’ twelve-point lead dwindled to single digits on several occasions. Yet, despite twelve points by Crawford, New York only led, 77-72, entering the fourth.

After the Knicks moved to a 61-47 lead, on Eddy Curry’s lay-in with 7:15 on the clock, the Wizards –behind 13 points from Jamison and 11 by Roger Mason, a free agent by way of the Israeli League- got to within single digits. Two free throws by Butler in the final minutes narrowed the gap to five.

Arenas was averaging 22 points, five rebounds, six assists and two steals per game, but Washington had won only three of eight games with him.

The Knicks, still relishing Sunday’s not-too-improbable victory over the Central Division leading Detroit Pistons –given that the visitors were playing their fourth game in five nights- started Fred Jones in place of the injured Marbury [bone spurs in his left ankle]. Detroit was held to a season-low 30.7% from the field, and narrowly missed scoring a franchise-low in points.

The Wizards will now entertain New York on Friday at the Verizon Center.

Knicks See Oz, Blast Wizards

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