A career night from rookie Luke Ridnour and a pivotal Rashard Lewis led 13-4 third quarter burst has led Seattle to an 8 point win over the New York Knicks, 95-87. Ridnour had 10 of his career high 15 points in the last period, and added other career highs of 5 rebounds (all offensive) and 7 assists as he continues to impress in his rookie year. Seattle were on fire from downtown in this one at the blistering clip of 9-16, and their effective shutting down of an in form New York frontcourt were both key factors in wrapping this one up and moving to 9-6 on the season. New York move to 7-12 and travel to Golden State next as part of a Pacific swing. For the Sonics, Vladimir Radmanovic posted a team-high 21 points, including 5-6 from downtown, and added 6 rebounds and 4 steals. Lewis added 13, 13 and 5, while Brent Barry also added 13. For New York Allan Houston predictably led the team with 24, while Keith Van Horn added a double double with 18 and 10. Charlie Ward provided a lift off the pine with 15, 6 and 7 dimes, but it wasn't enough. A key to Seattle's win was an all round contribution, with everyone getting double figures minutes-wise, barring Richie Frahm who didn't get on the floor. Coach McMillan kept experimenting with his rotations, meaning impressive early season performers Flip Murray and Calvin Booth were given only 20 and 15 minutes respectively, and only Lewis and Radmanovic played more than 30. Seattle also forced 23 turnovers, resulting in 34 key points. http://www.nba.com/games/20031203/NYKSEA/boxscore.html Next game: vs Indiania, Fri Dec 5, 7:30pm
Interested in seeing Dyess playing. He played with a lot of joy last game, even after having a rusty game. Good anaysis...
Although the Knicks are no pushover, these are the games the Sonics must win if they hope to sneak into the playoffs. Interesting to see how Dice plays in his second game back. He was rusty in the first one which is understandable. Lets see how he makes the transition.
