Karl-Anthony Towns only contributor as Knicks fall to Spurs

SAN ANTONIO — There was no Victor Wembanyama. And there was no De’Aaron Fox. And there wasn’t even Gregg Popovich, the San Antonio Spurs legendary head coach.

So perhaps it would be understandable if the Knicks took the makeshift Spurs roster lightly and maybe that would explain — not excuse — how the Knicks found themselves in a 28-point hole in the first half.

With 6-8 Jeremy Sochan playing center most of the night the Knicks had an advantage in the middle. But Karl-Anthony Towns got little help elsewhere much of the night and the Knicks were unable to overcome the massive hole they dug, falling 120-105 to the Spurs.

What they couldn’t overcome was a first half with a comically bad shooting performance and a porous defense, giving life to a lottery-bound team. With 1:47 left, Tom Thibodeau finally threw in the towel and emptied the bench with a back-to-back game awaiting them in Charlotte Thursday.

The Knicks drew within eight in the fourth quarter, but every rally was answered by, let me be clear, Sandro Mamukelashvili, the second-round pick out of Seton Hall, who wears No. 54 to honor the spot he was taken in the draft in 2021. Mamukelashvili entered the night with a season-high of 14 points and delivered a career-high 34 points on 13-for-14 shooting (7-for-7 from three), nine rebounds and three assists. As he hit every big shot fans at the Frost Center began to chant, “MVP,” and he left the game in the final seconds to a standing ovation. As he conducted an on-court interview rapper Flava Flav hugged him.

The Knicks got 32 points from Towns, but miserable offensive showings from just about every other player on the roster.

If the Knicks had completed the comeback from 28 points down it would have marked the largest deficit overcome by the Knicks dating back to at least the 1991-92 season. And they got as close as eight late in the third quarter

Towns, who had scored 15 consecutive points Monday to set a franchise record, seemed on that path at the start of the game, connecting on his first four shots and scoring the first nine points for the Knicks.

But Towns slowed down and there was no help from anyone else in the starting lineup. After those first four shots the Knicks combined to miss their next 15 attempts.

It might sound almost impossible to imagine, but the other four starters combined to miss their first 20 attempts from the field before OG Anunoby finally ended that, dunking on a feed from Towns with 1:52 left in the half. Deuce McBride followed with a three and Mikal Bridges ended the half with a corner three, but the damage was already done.

Anunoby was 1-for-8, McBride 1-for-7 and Bridges 1-for-6 while Josh Hart missed all three of his attempts — talking to himself as he ran back on defense after bricking a three-pointer in the final minute of the half. And the Knicks fell behind by as many as 28 and trailed 67-43 at the half.

It wasn’t just the offense, which was only boosted by Towns 19 points on 7-for-14 shooting and a perfect 3-for-3 around the rim for Mitchell Robinson, that was the problem. The shorthanded Spurs shot 50.9% from the field in the half and got a boost off the bench from Mamukelashvili who contributed 13 points and seven rebounds in just eight minutes.

McBride airballed a three-point attempt to start the second half, an ominous sign, but the Knicks connected on six of their next nine shots to close the gap to 72-57 less than four minutes into the third quarter. An Anunoby three with 6:25 left in the quarter closed the gap to 73-65 with a 22-6 run as the Knicks were 9-for-13 at that point and 3-for-3 from three-point range while San Antonio went cold this time, scoring just six points on 2-for-7 shooting with four turnovers.

But the comeback stalled and with the Knicks down by 12 Bridges tried to isolate against Blake Wesley. Wesley swiped his dribble and started a break, ending with a three-point field goal from Julian Champagnie. That gave San Antonio an 80-65 lead and they took an 83-72 lead into the fourth quarter.

Notes & quotes: Robinson was available Wednesday on the first night of a back-to-back set. Thibodeau said that his minutes are steadily rising and they would determine Thursday if he would play the second night of the back-to-backs . . . With Gregg Popovich still sidelined after suffering a stroke and his future yet determined, Thibodeau offered his respect. “He’s been a great ambassador for the game. He’s had a great impact on all of us coaches. What he means to the NBA, certainly to this city, all the things that he’s done. And we’re always thinking about him and we wish him well. We know he’s making steady progress. Whatever it is he decides to do we’re behind him 100%. We wish him the best.”