It was a great battle of advanced power toes as Zion Williamson went from foot to foot with Julius Randle.
But the game was decided by the backcourt of the Knicks of Derrick Rose and Reggie Bullock, propelling the Knicks to their sixth straight win, 122-112 in overtime, over the Pelicans to break their record for the best record in the world. season 31-27.
The Knicks won a six-point deficit in the final 1:30: Rose’s limit took the innings leading down the lane and they had the resources to whip a pass to Bullock, who drained the 3-point mark from the left corner. in the absence of 2.3 seconds. The Pelicans could have committed a foul on Rose, but they could imagine he was going for the easy 2.
“I thought about shooting her at first, but I saw Reggie in the corner,” Rose said in her interview on the court after the game. “I delivered it on the spot and Reg is a great shooter.”
Rose blocked Eric Bledsoe at the bell to force overtime. Rose scored the first extra time loop on a driving throw and Bullock hit a triple as the Knicks moved away and Williamson disappeared.
Rose finished with 23 points and five assists in his best game since returning from COVID-19. Bullock added 15 points (6 vs. 8 from the field) before committing a foul on the OT.
“There was no lack of clarity,” said Stan Van Gundy, a miffed Pelicans coach, about Rose-Bullock’s latest regulation play. “We made two mistakes in the play. We fucked the play. When we do, we deserve to lose … I don’t care if you’re a high school student, you should run what to do with 7.8 seconds. “
In addition to not missing, Van Gundy was referring to Lonzo Ball cheating on Bullock, leaving him open.
In his first NBA game in the field, Williamson scored 34 points as the Pelicans returned to the second half with 13 points at halftime and looked like they had won the rematch. But these Knicks never give up.
Williamson put on a show, getting 13 of 23 baskets and a handful of driving shots. Williamson sought revenge for a loss to the New Orleans Knicks on Wednesday, where the Knicks took the ball out of their hands in the fourth quarter.
Randle, who ran out of goals in the first quarter, finished with 33 points but shot just 11 of 28. He had 10 assists but four losses. He scored 30 more points in four games in a row and reached a 3-point end in overtime to give the Knicks an eight-point lead to seal the win.
RJ Barrett fouled 4:07 after Williamson caught an offensive rebound and Barrett dragged him down. Williamson was harmed in the play, but still threw free throws before briefly leaving the game. Barrett, facing his old friend from Duke, scored 18 points, but committed six business losses.