Curry, Randolph Power Knicks Over Bulls

Eager to bring an end to a long slide, the Knicks won in style on Saturday afternoon at Madison Square Garden, defeating the Chicago Bulls 85-78 in front of a capacity crowd. Behind an impressive team effort, marked by high energy and defensive intensity, the Knicks put the rough patch behind them and exited the Garden floor to a standing ovation.

Many Knicks came up big on Saturday, most notably the frontcourt duo of Zach Randolph and Eddy Curry. Curry led the team with 21 points and seven rebounds and thrilled the crowd with several early slams off feeds from his fellow pivotman, Randolph. Randolph came up big as well, scoring 20 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter, to help the Knicks finish off the Bulls.

The big men were not the only stars, as guards Stephon Marbury and Quentin Richardson both had impressive games as well. Marbury provided calm leadership and suffocating defense on Chicago’s leading scorer, Ben Gordon, who put in only 13 points, well below his season average.

“Unbelievable,” Richardson said of Marbury’s defense. “He went out there and guarded their best player. (Gordon) has been killing us ever since I came to the Knicks. Steph took it as a personal challenge and it helped us win.”

In addition to his defense, Marbury added 19 points, four assists and six rebounds.

“Steph hit some shots,” said David Lee. “He has been working hard. Having him hit some shots there was great.”

Knicks President, Basketball Operations, and Head Coach, Isiah Thomas agreed that it was a big day for Marbury.

“The way he played the game, the way he controlled the game offensively and defensively … I thought Marbury was great tonight,” Thomas said.

It was Richardson, however, who was the rebounding leader of the game and a defensive stalwart on Sunday. He hauled in 15 boards, one off his career high. His effort, combined with those of Curry, Randolph and Marbury, and aided by an impressive effort from the bench, helped the Knicks win an important game on their home floor.

“We tried to execute everything Coach (Thomas) was telling us to do,” Richardson said of his strong effort. “When I am out on the court, I want to contribute to the win. Whatever it takes: rebounding, passing.”

Thomas was really impressed by Richardson’s performance.

“I thought he was huge,” Thomas said of Richardson. “He gives us everything he has every night. He has been pretty banged up playing with that hyper-extended elbow, but somehow he finds a way to get involved in the game defensively.”

The Knicks won on defense and energy on Sunday, as the team held the Bulls to under 35 percent shooting from the field.

“We have to play defense. Everybody came out here and played together collectively. That’s what we have to do,” Randolph said. “We just came out and played hard. We really needed this win. Like Coach said, we just have to tighten up and play defense.”

Lee said defense was the difference against a team like Chicago.

“They are a team that is very capable of going on big runs, the way they shoot the basketball,” Lee said. “We were able to score a couple of times but more importantly hold them defensively.”

The Knicks’ bench played a large role in the team’s strong defense and in the win. Renaldo Balkman led the bench in minutes, points, rebounds, steals and floor burns, as he constantly dove for loose balls, disrupted passes and altered Chicago’s offensive flow when he was in the game. In 18 minutes, Balkman had six points, six rebounds, two steals and numerous tipped balls, while covering multiple positions, including point guard.

The mood in the Knicks’ locker room was upbeat after the game, as the team understood it had just gained a much needed win.