Mitchell Robinson finally returned on Sunday night, as did Spike Lee, but the Knicks failed to achieve what would have been the most significant return of all.
Julius Randle forced overtime with a 3-point basket towards the end of the regulation, but was called in for a late free-kick foul that resulted in free throws forward – and then missed an 18-foot jump when the second time was up. Knicks ended up crushing the loss to first place Philadelphia in less than a week, 101-100, at the Garden.
Randle called the disgusting “ridiculous f – king” during an ardent post-game press conference.
Randle scored 24 points and Alec Burks finished with 20, including seven in overtime, but the Knicks dropped to 21-22 before two home games on Tuesday and Thursday against Washington. Lee was even present in his usual chair beside the court for the first time since his public feud with Jim Dolan more than a year ago.
The confusing game, which featured 36 combined turnovers between the two teams, was tied in three quarters. Danny Green’s floater gave Philly an 88-85 lead with 19.1 seconds remaining, but Long Island’s other product, Tobias Harris, hit two free throws a few seconds later. Randle hit a 3 in the right corner with 6.4 ticks on the clock to force the overtime.
Reggie Bullock’s 3 points put the Knicks at 100-96 with 1:10 to play, but Harris (20 points) responded with another long-distance make. Shake Milton lost a potential forward tray, but Randle was whistled for a missing ball on the rebound, and Harris hit both free throws with 5.3 seconds to go to a Philadelphia one point lead.
The game was played with two referees because Dannica Mosher was unavailable due to the league’s health and safety protocols, and both sides complained during the match about refereeing, with both Randle and Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau suffering technical fouls. .
Robinson played for the first time since breaking his right hand on February 12 against the Wizards, and ended up with four points and six rebounds in 16 minutes off the bench. He appeared to be limping with a possible ankle injury in the bench area at the end of the fourth period.
Immanuel Quickley also returned after an absence from a game due to an ankle problem, scoring 10 points out of 4 out of 12 shots.
Thibodeau said before the game that Robinson would initially play in the second unit while regaining fitness after starting each of his first 27 games this season.
“He’s probably going to leave the bank and then we’ll see where that goes. But eventually he will be back on the starting lineup, ”said Thibodeau. “It was a hand injury, so he was able to do a lot of cardio. But it is different from playing a game. We will watch closely with our medical team and see where he will be when he gets there. “
After participating in the team’s morning shootaround, 22-year-old Robinson said “it was great to be there again with the guys” during a controlled workout the day before.
Robinson did not wear a brace on his hand, which he said had a metal plate inserted during the surgery on February 16. He checked in for Noel with 3:42 left in the first quarter, and he contributed an inner bucket and a dunk in three attempts at halftime.
The Sixers led by 14 points with 3:31 remaining in the second quarter, but the Knicks ended the half with a 13-0 streak, with two 3-point strokes from Quickley and a steal and Barrett’s layup to close with 43-42 in range.
Buckets from Nerlens Noel (13 points) and RJ Barrett (19) took the Knicks ahead in the opening minutes of the third quarter, and they led by up to six at the end of the period, before the Sixers signed a 64-64 tie entering the fourth Final.