Knicks takeaways from Sunday’s 110-107 loss to the Nets, including no answer for Kevin Durant

Following a long West Coast road trip, where the Knicks went 3-2, New York lost 110-107 to the Nets on Sunday.

RJ Barrett Evan Fournier, Mitchell Robinson, Alec Burks and Julius Randle was the Knicks’ starting five against Brooklyn. Seth Curry was a late scratch for the Nets with ankle soreness. Brooklyn had a starting five of Kevin Durant, Bruce Brown, Patty Mills, Andre Drummond and Goran Dragic.

Here are the takeaways….

The Nets went out to a quick 11-0 lead as the Knicks missed their first five shots. A long Fournier two got the scoring going for the Knicks, who would go on a 10-3 run of their own to cut Brooklyn’s lead. Both teams would trade buckets and runs until the end of the first quarter with the Nets leading the Knicks, 35-30.

After a dismal start, the Knicks would bounce back to shoot 48 percent in the opening frame. Fournier led the Knicks with 12 points on five-of-six shooting. However, the Knicks’ defense was porous allowing 57 percent shooting to Brooklyn and 16 points to Durant.

The Knicks started the second quarter with Obi Toppin (returning from injury), Jericho Sims, Barrett, Burks and Miles McBride. This unit, with Durant on the bench for Brooklyn, went out to a 8-2 run to take their first lead of the game, 38-37. The Knicks would increase the lead incrementally, but an 8-0 run by the Nets in the closing minutes of the first half -- brought on mostly by Brooklyn dominating on the offensive glass -- gave them a 59-56 lead with a minute and a half to go. The Nets would take a 62-60 lead into halftime.

The Knicks shot an outstanding 60 percent from the field in the second, while the defense tightened up a bit to limit Brooklyn to just 42 percent shooting. Barrett led the Knicks with 15 points while Fournier (14) and Randle (11) led a balanced attack for New York. The Knicks still had no answers for Durant who went into halftime with 27 points.

The Knicks started the second half with Robinson, Quickley, Burks, Fournier and Barrett. After a 6-0 run from the Nets, the Knicks would go out on a 7-0 run of their own to take a 73-71 lead. Turnovers and the ball bouncing the wrong way helped the Nets go out to a 7-0 run to take an 82-75 lead with four minutes remaining in the third. Four straight points from Randle in the final minute helped shed the deficit to 88-83 heading into the fourth quarter.

New York shot just 47 percent in the third while the Nets -- led by Durant's 13 points in the quarter -- shot 52 percent. Fournier shot three-for-five with eight points in that quarter.

The Knicks started the fourth quarter with Toppin, Barrett, Sims, McBride and Quickley. Durant would have his way in the fourth and built a seven-point lead with four minutes to go. But one possession, Durant would turn into Randle who stole the ball and received a clear-path foul. This led to nine straight points to take the lead 103-101 with less than three minutes to go.

Durant would be double teamed in the final minutes of the game, but he would make a three with 56 seconds remaining to give Brooklyn a 106-103 lead. After a quick dunk by Randle, Durant would miss a three to give the Knicks a chance at the lead. A Fournier shot would be blocked by Bruce Brown and Durant would make both his free throws.

The Nets quickly fouled Barrett to prevent the three attempt, who would make both free throws -- although it looked like he tried to miss his second. Durant would make his two free throws, and with no timeouts the Knicks couldn't get up a shot and fell 110-107.

The Knicks shot just 33 percent in the final quarter and 47 percent overall, but the balanced attack and solid defense wasn't enough to stop Durant who scored 53 points -- no other Net had more than 18. Randle (26), Barrett (24) and Fournier (25) led the Knicks in scoring.

Highlights

What’s next

The Knicks start a four-game homestand on Wednesday when they host the Portland Trail Blazers at 7: 30 p.m.