Nets 112, Knicks 110: Scenes from an excellent effort undone by another third-quarter crap-a-thon

I really don’t want to talk about this game. The pain is still too fresh. But we soldier on, don’t we, fellow Knicks fans?

The Knicks came oh-so-close to knocking off the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday evening. Why didn’t they finish the job? The excellence of superstars Kevin Durant and James Harden? Ref bullshit? A little bit of both, I’d say. More importantly, though, the Knicks once again fell prey to their most persistent nemesis this season: the early third-quarter malaise.

New York held a one-point lead at the half, and the Nets quickly erased it by starting the third quarter on a 12-0 run in less than three minutes. They would eventually build a 16-point lead before the Knicks bench — as they usually do — battled back.

The fourth quarter was a back-and-forth affair, with Kevin Durant doing his usual thing, and the Knicks somehow matching him. But then KD hit a shot to go up two and Julius Randle was called for a technical foul to put the Nets up three. The Knicks would need a three-pointer to tie, and they got one from the much-maligned Evan Fournier.

Sadly, Mitchell Robinson was called for a foul on James Johnson on the ensuing possession, and the Nets walked away with a two-point win. I disapprove.

Recap to come.