Jazz at Knicks
The New York Knicks are coming off one of their most impressive wins of the season and will try to make it two in a row against playoff hopefuls from the Western Conference when they host the Utah Jazz on Wednesday. The Knicks snapped Houston's six-game winning streak with a 125-123 triumph over the Rockets on Monday.
New York officially welcomed new team president Leon Rose on Monday and showed the new boss what it could do later that night by dominating the small-ball Rockets on the glass with a 65-34 rebounding advantage and holding off a rally down the stretch. "We played to our size and strength," forward Julius Randle, who collected 16 points and a team-high 16 rebounds in the win, told reporters. "I told (Rose), 'Congrats, you're undefeated right now.' A nice first day for him." The Jazz are recovering from a four-game slide by picking on sub-.500 opponents from the East and followed up a home win over the Washington Wizards by beginning a four-game trip with a 126-113 triumph at Cleveland on Monday. "We gave up 113 points," Utah guard Donovan Mitchell told reporters. "In the last game they had 119, so we still have work to do. Obviously, we're happy with the wins, but for us to really get over that hump and where we really want to be, we've got to hold teams a little lower than that."
TIME: 7:30 p.m. ET. TV: AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain, MSG
ABOUT THE JAZZ (38-22): Small forward Bojan Bogdanovic led the way with 28 points on 10-of-19 shooting - 5-of-10 from beyond the arc - on Monday to break out of a slump that saw him shoot 31 percent over the final five games of February. "We are back in a rhythm," Bogdanovic told reporters after the win. "This is a great way to start this road trip. ... I mean, it's just great to see the ball going through the net. And if the team wins, that's most important." The Jazz handed out 30 assists on 47 field goals, shot 56.6 percent from the floor and knocked down 20 3-pointers on Monday but still surrendered 113 points to a Cleveland squad that was missing key pieces Andre Drummond, Tristan Thompson and Darius Garland.
ABOUT THE KNICKS (19-42): The prize of Rose's young roster is rookie RJ Barrett, who matched a season high with 27 points on 10-of-18 shooting, added five rebounds and five assists, and dropped in a layup to provide the winning bucket with 7.6 seconds left against the Rockets. "Aggressive," Houston star James Harden told reporters of Barrett. "I like that, especially for a rookie. Not timid at all, and when you're aggressive and confident in your game, you look good out there. Want him to continue to build his confidence and keep being aggressive and have the opportunity, which he will, to be great." Barrett is 18-of-28 from the floor over the last two games, helping New York to back-to-back wins.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Knicks reserve C Mitchell Robinson posted a double-double in three of the last four games.
2. Jazz SF Royce O'Neale is 9-of-17 from 3-point range over the last four contests.
3. Utah crushed New York 128-104 at home on Jan. 8 and owns a three-game winning streak in the series.