The New York Knicks held off the Brooklyn Nets 93-92 for their fifth straight win on Friday night.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 26 points and 15 rebounds, Jalen Brunson 17, and OG Anunoby added 16 for the Knicks after trailing by 13 points in the first half.
On the other hand, Josh Minott scored 22 points, and Williams added 17 for the Nets, who have lost six straight games.
Ben Saraf had a chance to win it for the Nets at the buzzer, but missed a 45-footer.
New York beat Brooklyn for the 14th straight time, the longest winning streak for either team in the local rivalry.
Brooklyn’s last victory over the Knicks was on Jan. 28, 2023, before trading Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
The final meeting this season had moments where it appeared to be a rivalry, even though the Knicks edged the Nets recently.
Meanwhile, New York center Mitchell Robinson and Brooklyn’s Ziaire Williams were assessed technical fouls after several Nets players confronted Robinson, who stood over Nolan Traore after the Nets guard had a hard fall while fouling Robinson as he tried to block his shot with over three minutes left in the first half.
Anunoby and Nic Claxton each received technical fouls after Anunoby shoved Claxton twice moments after he turned the ball over late in the third quarter.
The Knicks scored a season-low 14 points in the first quarter and trailed 50-44 at the break before turning it around and outscoring the Nets 31-15 in the third.
Towns finished a layup to increase the lead to 84-70 with 9:34 remaining before the Nets rallied with a 17-0 run to take a 87-84 change favor with 3:33 minutes left.
Towns and Brunson combined for eight points to pull New York ahead 92-87 with 1:04 left to play.
Traore’s three pulled the Nets within one, and Towns missed two free throws before Saraf’s came up short to win the game.
Both teams will play on Sunday: the Knicks host the Wziards, while the Nets visit the Kings.
