Twenty-four hours after losing beloved announcer John Andariese, the New York Knicks shocked the fans by putting together a gritty defensive effort in the second half against the Pacers. New York put the clamps on Paul George & Co. to the tune of 29 second-half points. To put that into perspective, the Knicks gave up 39 points to Brooklyn in the first quarter Sunday afternoon. It was the kind of game Johnny Hoops himself used to call back in the ‘90s — butt nasty, with the Knicks actually coming out on top.
There is, after these types of games, a tendency to throw up one’s hands and lament, “Why didn’t they play like this earlier in the season?