The table was set. The Dallas Mavericks (11-8), missing Luka Donu010diu0107, Klay Thompson, and Daniel Gafford, were hosting the Knicks (10-8), who were fresh off a 145-point explosion in Denver. Expectations were high for New York to detonate another offensive bomb.
Offensive, it was.
In their fourth-straight road game, New York stunk in the first quarter (15 points) and stunk again in the second. They trailed 60-38 at halftime after shooting a dismal 26% from the floor and 13% from deep. They improved slightly in the third quarter, but trading baskets doesn’t rescue one from a 20-point hole.