LOS ANGELES – The Knicks got Stephon Marbury back from exodus, Zach Randolph back from bereavement leave and Quentin Richardson back from injury.
But they did not get back their winning mojo, dropping their fourth straight last night, 84-81 to the Clippers, at the Staples Center despite mounting a raging late fourth-quarter comeback. Jamal Crawford missed a 30-foot, potential, game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer. The Knicks shot 34.8 percent.
Trailing 73-56 midway through the fourth, the Knicks staged a 21-2 run to pull into a 77-77 tie with 1:41 left on Eddy Curry’s two free throws. But ironically, Marbury, who came off the bench for the first time in four years, was right in the middle of their failed attempt to win it.
Marbury missed a wide-open shot at a left-corner trey with 42 seconds remaining. Then Cuttino Mobley outmuscled Marbury inside, backing him in and scored on a fadeaway to give the Clippers an 81-77 lead with 26.3 seconds left that clinched the victory. Marbury got taken out on the next defensive possession for Richardson.
Trailing by three points, Marbury drove down the right of the lane but missed on a runner high off the glass with 11.1 seconds left. The Knicks got the ball back, down three, and Marbury eschewed a 3-pointer and drove in for a layup cutting the deficit to one with 6.4 seconds left. Corey Maggette made the free throws and Crawford missed a desperation trey.
The turmoil-laden Knicks fell to 2-5 and 0-2 on the West Coast trip that continues its miserable run in Sacramento tomorrow.
Marbury didn’t look too jetlagged in a potent first half before sagging in the second half. Marbury finished with 13 points in 34 minutes, shooting 4-of-12.
The Knicks got within 77-75 with 2:45 left off a Curry tip. Marbury had snaked to the hole for a runner on the previous possession. Curry finished with 16 points but mostly was passive, and Randolph looked rusty, scoring 16 points on 5 of 18 shooting.
Marbury made his first appearance with 2:53 left in the first quarter and he put forth a good, aggressive stint.
Marbury scored a team-high nine points in 14:53 of the half, getting to the foul line six times, making five three throws. Marbury looked more focused and alive on defense. That sort of basket-attacking was not evident before their feud.
The Knicks led 50-43 with 9:50 left in the third before the Clippers embarked on a 26-5 run, extending across the third and fourth quarters. At one point, the Knicks missed 17 straight shots.
The Knicks took a 44-41 lead at halftime but went without a field goal for the final 9:50 of the third quarter, falling behind 63-53 after three quarters.