Scottie Barnes suffers right ankle sprain as shorthanded Raptors fall to the Knicks
The Raptors’ injury woes continue, especially for their star player in Scottie Barnes.
TORONTO — The New York Knicks prevailed against the Toronto Raptors, coming away with a tight 113-108 win in Scotiabank Arena on Monday night.
For the Raptors, they were without Scottie Barnes during the late stretch. The all-star had to leave the game halfway through the third quarter with a right ankle sprain, after he landed on Karl-Anthony Towns’ foot while contesting his shot. In a video replay, Barnes could be seen repeatedly saying “I can’t feel my foot,” to the team’s medical staff, before he was helped off the court and ruled out for the remainder of the night.
Raptors head coach Darko Rajaković says they’ve performed X-rays and they’ve come back negative, however the team will see how he’s feeling on Tuesday.
It was a close matchup throughout, with 19 lead changes and 13 occasions where the score was tied. However, the more experienced Knicks were able to execute down the stretch, led by their one-two offensive punch in Towns and Jalen Brunson, who combined for 44 points, including 14 in the fourth quarter.
Without their all-star in Barnes, it was ultimately the Raptors’ late-game defensive execution that made the difference. Post-game, Rajaković pointed to a 4-point play that Brunson capitalized on after Davion Mitchell fouled him from beyond the arc, which put the Knicks up 105-104 with 3:03 left. Then there was a Towns dagger-three, as RJ Barrett didn’t close him out, putting the Knicks up by five with 6.1 seconds remaining.
“Those are the moments when the game is on the line, that your antenna is going to have to be even more up,” said Rajaković. “You’re going to have to be even more dialled in and execute.”
Down the stretch, the Raptors rode Barrett’s offensive momentum, as he put up 30 points on 13-24 shooting and four assists.
He was clutch in various stretches, including when he went 1 vs. 4 against the Knicks in transition, tying the game at 108 with 42 seconds remaining.
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