Karl-Anthony Towns scored nine points during a decisive run spanning the third and fourth quarters Wednesday night for the host New York Knicks, who snapped a season-long four-game losing streak with a 123-111 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
Towns finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds while adding seven assists for the Knicks, who avoided their first five-game losing streak since December 2022.
Jalen Brunson had 26 points and seven assists while OG Anunoby finished with 20 points. Miles McBride scored 16 points and Mikal Bridges collected 15 points while Jordan Clarkson added 12 points off the bench.
The Knicks finished with 31 assists two nights after registering a season-low 15 assists in a 121-90 loss to the Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons.
Ivica Zubac (22 points, 11 rebounds) and John Collins (18 points, 10 rebounds) each posted double-doubles for the Clippers, who lost for just the second time in nine games. Kawhi Leonard scored 25 points while James Harden finished with 23 points following a one-game absence due to a shoulder injury.
The Clippers opened the game on a 14-5 run and the Knicks took a trio of one-possession leads before Los Angeles ended the quarter with a 31-27 lead. The visitors didn’t trail again until Guerschon Yabusele drained a 3-pointer to put New York up 73-72 with 5:58 left in the third.
The Knicks held a trio of one-point leads before Clarkson’s old-fashioned 3-point play with 54 seconds left put them ahead for good at 88-87 and sparked the 30-13 run.
Towns scored the first five points of the fourth for the Knicks, who hit the layup that gave the hosts their first double-digit lead at 103-92 with 7:54 left. New York took its biggest lead at 115-100 on Yabusele’s 3-pointer with 4:47 remaining. The Clippers got within single digits just once down the stretch.
