• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Hot-shooting Crawford helps Knicks top Wizards

Nov 8, 2008 - 4:13 AM By Tim Hipps PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- Jamal Crawford scored 23 points and Zach Randolph added 22 and 13 rebounds as the New York Knicks won their second straight game Friday, a 114-108 victory over the Washington Wizards.

Chris Duhon collected six points, seven rebounds and 12 assists without a turnover for the Knicks, who posted their first road triumph under coach Mike D'Antoni.

"It was a solid game," Duhon said. "I've just been watching a lot of film on coming off the pick-and-rolls. Early on, I got caught up in us playing fast and I was coming off the pick-and-rolls fast and kind of getting myself in trouble a little bit. After studying the tape a little bit with the coaches, I just feel more comfortable changing speeds. Guys did a great job of knocking down shots tonight."

Randolph's layup capped a 10-0 run and gave the Knicks a 112-103 lead with 2:32 remaining. Crawford scored four points during the spurt and Randolph added three.

Antawn Jamison's layup on the run pulled the Wizards to within 102-101 with 5:40 remaining, but they could not answer New York's up-tempo play down the stretch.

"It's fun. We still have a lot to learn," Duhon said of the new style of play. "We're still trying to get comfortable with it, but so far we're doing a pretty good job with it. The thing is, as the season continues to go on, we're just going to continue to get better and better."

Caron Butler scored 30 points and Jamison had 24 and 12 rebounds for the Wizards, who shot 51 percent (46-of-89) and outrebounded the Knicks, 50-36, en route to their fourth straight loss to start the season.

Anthony Roberson's 3-pointer from the left corner gave New York a 102-97 lead with 7:13 left. Nate Robinson's breakaway layup gave the Knicks a 97-90 lead with 9:22 left.

JaVale McGee's alley-oop layup from Juan Dixon for a three-point play pulled the Wizards to within 82-81 late in the third quarter.

"I thought we came out with pretty good energy to open the game," Washington coach Eddie Jordan said. "It was just a great night by them, and we couldn't make the big plays at the end. We made a major run, but we just couldn't make that big play."

The Knicks opened the third quarter with a 10-5 run, capped by Randolph's layup for a 74-63 lead. Quentin Richardson and Crawford each hit a 3-pointer during the spurt, giving the Knicks 11 shots from the arc early in the second half.

"I told them to keep backing up a little bit," D'Antoni joked. "No, you're right, but we also started the game off with threes. Zach even drained one. There will be nights like that, but these guys can obviously shoot threes. If you're wide-open, take them, and we're going to do that, but we would like to mix it up and go inside-outside and just try to take the best available shot.

"The last two games, I think we've done that. I thought we're getting more confidence with the ball."

Crawford scored New York's last eight points of the first half and the Knicks led, 64-58, at the break.

McGee's alley-oop slam from Dixon pulled the Wizards into a 56-56 tie with 1:41 remaining in the second quarter.

The Knicks opened with consecutive 3-pointers by Crawford, Richardson and Randolph for an early 9-2 lead. Early in the second quarter, six Knicks already had knocked down shots from the arc.

"I thought we did a good job all game of moving the ball," Crawford said. "We had 36 assists and only 10 turnovers. Nobody cared about who scored. When you play that type of style, there will be opportunities for everybody. ... Just keep moving the ball and passing up good shots for great shots."