"This one hurts." So said Herb Williams after Friday night's 116-115 loss to the Kings. On a night where the Knicks shot 61.5% from the field, out-rebounded the Kings by 10, and had Starbury score a season-high 37, the season-long habit of finding new and perplexing ways to lose continued unabated.
For their part, Sacramento had a lot to be proud of. Chris Webber and Peja Stojakovic both missed the contest due to injuries, but Mike Bibby (40 points, 15 in the 4th quarter) and Brad Miller (35 points) provided outstanding offense and never gave up. The Knicks had a rare nice game from Tim Thomas, who contributed 23, but this was cancelled out by the late-game foibles of Penny Hardaway. Lil' Penny managed to miss a 3-pointer, commit a foul to put the Kings ahead, and turn the ball over in the final minute of the game. This contributed to the Kings' 9-point flurry in the final 48 seconds of the game that stole the game from a team that desperately needed it.
The Knicks are now in last place in the Atlantic, a division where no team is above .500. Unbelievable. With the losing streak at four games, relief arrives tonight... erm, no it doesn't - the Knicks are playing at 37-11 Phoenix. Can they just call the game off due to utter predictability?
