Raptors pour in 86 before halftime and rout Knicks 148-98 at Scotiabank Arena

A 15-4 answer, then an 86-point half

The Knicks scored first on two Miles McBride free throws at 10:46 of the opening quarter, but that edge barely registered. Scottie Barnes tied the game 10 seconds later, RJ Barrett pushed Toronto in front at 10:18, and Kawhi Leonard soon added a three from 24 feet. By the time Leonard spun in a 12-foot turnaround at the 7:45 mark, the Raptors had flipped the opening into a 15-4 lead and established the direction of the game.

Toronto did not need one long burst to take control; the pressure came in waves. Barnes scored 19 points in 22 minutes and seemed to touch every part of the first-quarter surge, from a short push shot to a driving layup to the 21-foot step-back jumper he buried with 1.1 seconds left. That basket closed a 42-point quarter for Toronto and left New York staring at a 42-22 deficit after 12 minutes.

The second quarter was even harsher on the Knicks. Immanuel Quickley opened it with a jumper, Leonard followed with a 22-foot shot and then a three, and Toronto's depth widened the gap from there. Ja'Kobe Walter scored twice in a 23-second span midway through the quarter, Collin Murray-Boyles drilled a three and later finished a tip-in dunk, and Allen Graves joined in from deep. Toronto reached halftime ahead 86-47 after Barnes scored inside with 2.8 seconds left and Leonard added a free throw at 1.2.

Depth kept the margin growing

What stood out most was how many Raptors had a hand in the scoring. Leonard finished with 21 points in 17 minutes, Barnes had 19 on 8-of-10 shooting, Barrett added 17, and Murray-Boyles produced 19 points and nine rebounds without missing a field goal, going 7-for-7. Walter chipped in 14, Tyreke Key added 11, and the team turned 51 made baskets into 34 assists.

New York did find a more stable stretch after the break, mostly through James Wiseman. He was the Knicks' most efficient scorer, finishing with 18 points on 7-of-8 shooting and collecting 10 rebounds. Mohamed Diawara added 13 points, Tyler Nickel had 11, and the Knicks actually edged the third quarter 31-30. Still, every small gain met an answer. Walter's three at 6:46 of the third pushed Toronto to 100, and Murray-Boyles kept finishing around the basket as the margin stayed in the 30s.

Any hope of trimming it further disappeared at the start of the fourth. Key scored at 10:31, Trayce Jackson-Davis followed with a layup, and Key struck again on consecutive possessions to open a 10-0 run that turned 116-78 into 126-78. Jackson-Davis later completed a three-point play, Tyson Degenhart knocked down a three, Malachi Smith hit from 25 feet, and Jackson-Davis punctuated the night with a dunk at 1:08. Toronto's largest lead reached 53 before the final horn.

Our take

Toronto's offensive profile was as convincing as the final score. The Raptors shot 57.3 per cent from the field, made 17 threes, won the rebounding battle 52-38 and finished with 34 assists against only nine total turnovers. Add 12 steals, 19 points off turnovers, 25 fast-break points and 54 points in the paint, and this starts to look less like one hot shooting night than a full evening of control.

For New York, the box score points to a few obvious problems before anything more subtle is discussed. The Knicks shot 7-for-41 from three, just 39.5 per cent overall, and committed 18 total turnovers. Against a team scoring this efficiently, cold outside shooting can be survived only if the rest of the night is clean. This one was not: Toronto converted New York's mistakes into 19 points and kept finding enough easy offence to remove suspense early.

There was at least one useful clue for the Knicks inside the damage. Wiseman's 18 points on eight shots and the team's 46 points in the paint suggest the offence had a more reliable option than the three-point line on a night when nothing dropped from distance. That alone would not have solved the defensive side of the scoreline, but it might have given New York a firmer foothold. Instead, Toronto owned the first half, shared the ball all night and turned the game into a runaway long before the fourth quarter.

Scoring moments

1st Quarter · 10:46
Miles McBride makes free throw 1 of 3
1st Quarter · 10:46
Miles McBride makes free throw 2 of 3
1st Quarter · 10:36
Scottie Barnes makes 15-foot jumper (Immanuel Quickley assists)
1st Quarter · 10:18
RJ Barrett makes two point shot
1st Quarter · 10:18
RJ Barrett makes free throw 1 of 1
1st Quarter · 9:38
Miles McBride makes 13-foot pullup jump shot (Jose Alvarado assists)
1st Quarter · 9:27
Kawhi Leonard makes free throw 1 of 2
1st Quarter · 9:27
Kawhi Leonard makes free throw 2 of 2
1st Quarter · 9:01
RJ Barrett makes 24-foot three point jumper (Immanuel Quickley assists)
1st Quarter · 8:25
Kawhi Leonard makes 24-foot three point jumper (Immanuel Quickley assists)
1st Quarter · 7:45
Kawhi Leonard makes 12-foot turnaround jump shot (RJ Barrett assists)
1st Quarter · 7:15
Bruce Brown makes 24-foot three pointer (Mohamed Diawara assists)
1st Quarter · 6:26
Scottie Barnes makes free throw 1 of 2
1st Quarter · 6:26
Scottie Barnes makes free throw 2 of 2
1st Quarter · 6:02
Mohamed Diawara makes 21-foot pullup jump shot (Miles McBride assists)
1st Quarter · 5:45
Scottie Barnes makes 5-foot two point shot
1st Quarter · 5:07
RJ Barrett makes 7-foot driving floating jump shot (Collin Murray-Boyles assists)
1st Quarter · 4:53
Mohamed Diawara makes 23-foot three point jumper (Pacome Dadiet assists)
1st Quarter · 4:43
Jakob Poeltl makes free throw 1 of 2
1st Quarter · 4:43
Jakob Poeltl makes free throw 2 of 2
1st Quarter · 4:30
Drew Eubanks makes two point shot (Bruce Brown assists)
1st Quarter · 4:12
Scottie Barnes makes running layup (Collin Murray-Boyles assists)
1st Quarter · 3:23
Collin Murray-Boyles makes free throw 1 of 2
1st Quarter · 3:23
Collin Murray-Boyles makes free throw 2 of 2
1st Quarter · 3:03
Collin Murray-Boyles makes running layup
1st Quarter · 2:54
Tyler Nickel makes free throw 1 of 2
1st Quarter · 2:16
Immanuel Quickley makes 10-foot two point shot
1st Quarter · 1:52
Scottie Barnes makes 10-foot two point shot (Immanuel Quickley assists)
1st Quarter · 1:34
Immanuel Quickley makes free throw 1 of 2
1st Quarter · 1:34
Immanuel Quickley makes free throw 2 of 2
1st Quarter · 1:06
Kevin McCullar Jr. makes running layup
1st Quarter · 57.9
Kawhi Leonard makes tip shot
1st Quarter · 46.5
Tyler Nickel makes 16-foot pullup jump shot (Drew Eubanks assists)
1st Quarter · 46.5
Drew Eubanks makes free throw 1 of 1
1st Quarter · 35.0
Scottie Barnes makes driving layup
1st Quarter · 35.0
Scottie Barnes makes free throw 1 of 1
1st Quarter · 15.2
Tyler Kolek makes 10-foot pullup jump shot
1st Quarter · 1.1
Scottie Barnes makes 21-foot step back jumpshot
2nd Quarter · 11:25
Immanuel Quickley makes 17-foot jumper (Scottie Barnes assists)
2nd Quarter · 11:00
Kawhi Leonard makes 22-foot running jump shot (Scottie Barnes assists)
2nd Quarter · 10:40
RJ Barrett makes driving layup
2nd Quarter · 10:08
Tyler Nickel makes running layup
2nd Quarter · 9:41
Kawhi Leonard makes 22-foot three point jumper (Jakob Poeltl assists)
2nd Quarter · 9:23
Tyler Nickel makes 25-foot three point jumper (Tyler Kolek assists)
2nd Quarter · 9:05
RJ Barrett makes 4-foot turnaround jump shot
2nd Quarter · 8:49
Tony Bradley makes driving layup (Kevin McCullar Jr. assists)
2nd Quarter · 7:51
Tony Bradley makes finger roll layup (Tyler Kolek assists)
2nd Quarter · 7:42
Jamal Shead makes 7-foot driving floating jump shot
2nd Quarter · 7:16
Bruce Brown makes 1-foot layup (Tyler Kolek assists)
2nd Quarter · 6:58
Ja'Kobe Walter makes 1-foot jump bank shot
2nd Quarter · 6:35
Ja'Kobe Walter makes 24-foot running jump shot (Jamal Shead assists)
2nd Quarter · 6:02
Collin Murray-Boyles makes 24-foot running jump shot (Jamal Shead assists)
2nd Quarter · 5:53
Miles McBride makes free throw 1 of 2
2nd Quarter · 5:53
Miles McBride makes free throw 2 of 2
2nd Quarter · 5:38
Allen Graves makes 23-foot three point jumper (Ja'Kobe Walter assists)
2nd Quarter · 5:09
Ja'Kobe Walter makes 24-foot running jump shot (Jamal Shead assists)
2nd Quarter · 4:49
Kawhi Leonard makes free throw 1 of 1
2nd Quarter · 4:37
Kawhi Leonard makes 24-foot turnaround jump shot (Jamal Shead assists)
2nd Quarter · 3:46
Collin Murray-Boyles makes tip in dunk
2nd Quarter · 3:35
James Wiseman makes dunk (Jose Alvarado assists)
2nd Quarter · 2:59
James Wiseman makes 2-foot hook shot (Miles McBride assists)
2nd Quarter · 2:59
James Wiseman makes free throw 1 of 1
2nd Quarter · 2:37
RJ Barrett makes layup (Scottie Barnes assists)
2nd Quarter · 2:23
Jose Alvarado makes 3-foot two point shot
2nd Quarter · 1:58
Miles McBride makes 10-foot running pullup jump shot
2nd Quarter · 1:49
Collin Murray-Boyles makes 25-foot three pointer (Scottie Barnes assists)
2nd Quarter · 1:23
Mohamed Diawara makes 26-foot three point jumper (Miles McBride assists)
2nd Quarter · 1:14
Kawhi Leonard makes free throw 2 of 2
2nd Quarter · 33.7
RJ Barrett makes free throw 1 of 2
2nd Quarter · 2.8
Scottie Barnes makes 6-foot turnaround jump shot
2nd Quarter · 1.2
Kawhi Leonard makes free throw 2 of 2
3rd Quarter · 11:25
Ja'Kobe Walter makes 23-foot three point jumper (RJ Barrett assists)
3rd Quarter · 10:43
Jose Alvarado makes 16-foot pullup jump shot (Drew Eubanks assists)
3rd Quarter · 10:30
Jakob Poeltl makes layup (Immanuel Quickley assists)
3rd Quarter · 9:41
Drew Eubanks makes 1-foot reverse layup (Jose Alvarado assists)
3rd Quarter · 9:26
Jakob Poeltl makes 8-foot jumper (RJ Barrett assists)
3rd Quarter · 9:11
Pacome Dadiet makes driving layup (Jose Alvarado assists)
3rd Quarter · 8:11
Immanuel Quickley makes free throw 1 of 2
3rd Quarter · 8:11
Immanuel Quickley makes free throw 2 of 2
3rd Quarter · 8:01
Drew Eubanks makes alley oop layup (Jaden Akins assists)
3rd Quarter · 7:23
Scottie Barnes makes 15-foot turnaround jump shot
3rd Quarter · 6:55
Pacome Dadiet makes free throw 1 of 2
3rd Quarter · 6:46
Ja'Kobe Walter makes 23-foot three point jumper (Immanuel Quickley assists)
3rd Quarter · 6:29
Pacome Dadiet makes free throw 1 of 2
3rd Quarter · 6:29
Pacome Dadiet makes free throw 2 of 2
3rd Quarter · 6:04
Pacome Dadiet makes 9-foot two point shot
3rd Quarter · 5:53
RJ Barrett makes free throw 1 of 2
3rd Quarter · 5:53
RJ Barrett makes free throw 2 of 2
3rd Quarter · 5:42
James Wiseman makes 2-foot hook shot (Jaden Akins assists)
3rd Quarter · 5:28
Allen Graves makes free throw 1 of 2
3rd Quarter · 5:28
Allen Graves makes free throw 2 of 2
3rd Quarter · 5:15
James Wiseman makes 1-foot alley oop dunk (Bruce Brown assists)
3rd Quarter · 5:02
Jaden Akins makes running layup
3rd Quarter · 4:49
Jamal Shead makes free throw 1 of 2
3rd Quarter · 4:17
James Wiseman makes 7-foot two point shot
3rd Quarter · 4:17
James Wiseman makes free throw 1 of 1
3rd Quarter · 4:06
Collin Murray-Boyles makes 6-foot hook shot (Jamal Shead assists)
3rd Quarter · 3:50
Tyler Kolek makes 25-foot three point jumper (Jaden Akins assists)
3rd Quarter · 3:26
James Wiseman makes free throw 1 of 2
3rd Quarter · 3:26
James Wiseman makes free throw 2 of 2
3rd Quarter · 3:09
Collin Murray-Boyles makes 5-foot floating jump shot (Kyle Anderson assists)
3rd Quarter · 3:00
Tyler Kolek makes free throw 1 of 2
3rd Quarter · 3:00
Tyler Kolek makes free throw 2 of 2
3rd Quarter · 2:52
Jamal Shead makes free throw 1 of 2
3rd Quarter · 2:52
Jamal Shead makes free throw 2 of 2
3rd Quarter · 2:40
James Wiseman makes 1-foot alley oop dunk (Jaden Akins assists)
3rd Quarter · 2:25
Collin Murray-Boyles makes driving dunk
3rd Quarter · 1:55
Kyle Anderson makes 6-foot turnaround jump shot
3rd Quarter · 1:02
Collin Murray-Boyles makes free throw 2 of 2
4th Quarter · 10:31
Tyreke Key makes 8-foot floating jump shot (Nimari Burnett assists)
4th Quarter · 10:01
Trayce Jackson-Davis makes layup (Kyle Anderson assists)
4th Quarter · 9:47
Tyreke Key makes 24-foot running jump shot (Jaden Bradley assists)
4th Quarter · 8:43
Tyreke Key makes 25-foot three point jumper (Kyle Anderson assists)
4th Quarter · 8:35
Tyler Nickel makes free throw 1 of 3
4th Quarter · 8:35
Tyler Nickel makes free throw 2 of 3
4th Quarter · 8:35
Tyler Nickel makes free throw 3 of 3
4th Quarter · 8:18
Trayce Jackson-Davis makes 2-foot layup (Kyle Anderson assists)
4th Quarter · 8:18
Trayce Jackson-Davis makes free throw 1 of 1
4th Quarter · 7:56
Tyreke Key makes 24-foot running jump shot (Jaden Bradley assists)
4th Quarter · 7:16
Tyler Kolek makes driving layup (Kevin McCullar Jr. assists)
4th Quarter · 6:17
Drew Eubanks makes free throw 2 of 2
4th Quarter · 6:06
Jaden Bradley makes 9-foot fade away jump shot
4th Quarter · 6:06
Jaden Bradley makes free throw 1 of 1
4th Quarter · 5:47
Mohamed Diawara makes 3-foot two point shot
4th Quarter · 5:07
Tyson Degenhart makes 22-foot three point jumper (Nimari Burnett assists)
4th Quarter · 4:39
Kevin McCullar Jr. makes free throw 1 of 2
4th Quarter · 4:39
Kevin McCullar Jr. makes free throw 2 of 2
4th Quarter · 4:08
Mohamed Diawara makes 24-foot three point jumper (Tyler Kolek assists)
4th Quarter · 3:52
Trayce Jackson-Davis makes 7-foot two point shot (Malachi Smith assists)
4th Quarter · 3:27
James Wiseman makes 6-foot pullup jump shot
4th Quarter · 3:09
Alijah Martin makes driving layup (Tyson Degenhart assists)
4th Quarter · 2:44
Tyson Degenhart makes free throw 2 of 2
4th Quarter · 2:09
Malachi Smith makes 25-foot three point jumper (Alijah Martin assists)
4th Quarter · 1:25
Jaden Akins makes free throw 1 of 2
4th Quarter · 1:25
Jaden Akins makes free throw 2 of 2
4th Quarter · 1:08
Trayce Jackson-Davis makes running dunk (Malachi Smith assists)
4th Quarter · 53.4
Pacome Dadiet makes 24-foot three point jumper (Tyler Kolek assists)

New York Knicks — Players

Player	MIN	PTS	FG	3PT	FT	REB	AST	TO	STL	BLK	OREB	DREB	PF	+/-
Mohamed Diawara	29	13	5-10	3-7	0-0	3	1	0	1	0	0	3	5	-28
James Wiseman	24	18	7-8	0-0	4-4	10	0	3	0	0	4	6	0	-17
Bruce Brown	18	5	2-4	1-2	0-0	4	2	2	0	0	1	3	4	-24
Jose Alvarado	17	4	2-6	0-2	0-2	3	4	1	0	0	2	1	0	-25
Miles McBride	19	8	2-7	0-4	4-5	3	3	2	1	1	0	3	3	-23
Drew Eubanks	15	8	3-5	0-0	2-4	2	2	1	0	1	1	1	1	-18
Tyler Nickel	21	11	3-11	1-9	4-5	2	0	0	2	0	0	2	1	-21
Pacome Dadiet	18	10	3-9	1-7	3-4	1	1	0	0	1	1	0	4	-13
Tony Bradley	9	4	2-4	0-0	0-1	3	0	1	0	0	0	3	1	-15
Ochai Agbaji	10	0	0-2	0-1	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	-21
Kevin McCullar Jr.	18	4	1-4	0-2	2-4	3	2	2	1	1	0	3	2	-22
Tyler Kolek	28	9	3-8	1-4	2-2	3	5	4	0	0	0	3	3	-25
Jaden Akins	14	4	1-8	0-3	2-2	1	4	1	2	0	1	0	3	+2

Toronto Raptors — Players

Player	MIN	PTS	FG	3PT	FT	REB	AST	TO	STL	BLK	OREB	DREB	PF	+/-
Kawhi Leonard	17	21	6-12	4-8	5-7	5	0	0	2	0	1	4	2	+28
RJ Barrett	23	17	6-12	1-4	4-5	4	3	0	0	0	2	2	4	+20
Scottie Barnes	22	19	8-10	0-1	3-3	6	4	2	2	1	0	6	0	+29
Jakob Poeltl	19	6	2-2	0-0	2-2	5	1	0	1	0	0	5	2	+16
Immanuel Quickley	22	8	2-8	0-5	4-4	3	6	1	0	0	0	3	2	+24
Kyle Anderson	9	2	1-1	0-0	0-0	3	4	1	0	0	0	3	1	+13
Trayce Jackson-Davis	10	9	4-4	0-0	1-1	3	0	0	1	2	0	3	0	+11
Tyson Degenhart	7	4	1-4	1-4	1-2	2	1	0	0	0	0	2	0	+1
Collin Murray-Boyles	16	19	7-7	2-2	3-4	9	2	0	1	0	2	7	3	+21
Allen Graves	15	5	1-7	1-6	2-2	3	0	1	1	0	2	1	4	+9
Jamarion Sharp	2	0	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	+1
Tyreke Key	6	11	4-5	3-4	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	+13
Malachi Smith	6	3	1-1	1-1	0-0	0	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	-1
Jamal Shead	14	5	1-2	0-1	3-4	0	5	2	0	0	0	0	3	+14
Jaden Bradley	12	3	1-2	0-0	1-1	3	2	0	0	0	0	3	1	+12
Nimari Burnett	9	0	0-2	0-2	0-0	2	2	0	0	0	0	2	5	+9
Ja'Kobe Walter	18	14	5-8	4-6	0-0	1	1	0	1	1	1	0	1	+15
Alijah Martin	13	2	1-2	0-0	0-0	2	1	0	3	0	0	2	0	+15

New York Knicks — Team statistics

FG	34-86
Field Goal %	40
3PT	7-41
Three Point %	17
FT	23-33
Free Throw %	70
Rebounds	38
Offensive Rebounds	10
Defensive Rebounds	28
Assists	24
Steals	7
Blocks	4
Turnovers	17
Team Turnovers	1
Total Turnovers	18
Technical Fouls	0
Total Technical Fouls	0
Flagrant Fouls	0
Points Conceded Off Turnovers	19
Fast Break Points	10
Points in Paint	46
Fouls	27
Largest Lead	2
Lead Change	1
Percent Led	0

Toronto Raptors — Team statistics

FG	51-89
Field Goal %	57
3PT	17-44
Three Point %	39
FT	29-35
Free Throw %	83
Rebounds	51
Offensive Rebounds	8
Defensive Rebounds	43
Assists	34
Steals	12
Blocks	4
Turnovers	8
Team Turnovers	1
Total Turnovers	9
Technical Fouls	0
Total Technical Fouls	0
Flagrant Fouls	0
Points Conceded Off Turnovers	7
Fast Break Points	25
Points in Paint	54
Fouls	28
Largest Lead	53
Lead Change	1
Percent Led	96