Knicks fall apart in middle quarters as Pelicans snap win streak

The New York Knicks' seven-game win streak came to a sudden end Thursday night, as the New Orleans Pelicans pulled away in the second and third quarter for a 114-103 victory. New York trailed 94-76 entering the fourth and could only partially rally, as they took a tough loss to fall behind the Celtics by a half-game for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Crushing the Knicks in this one was dynamic Hornets rookie Kon Knueppel, who tied Jalen Brunson with a game-high 26 points. That included 6-for-10 from 3-point range for Knueppel, who became the youngest player in NBA history to hit at least six 3s in a game.

Three-point volume proved successful for the Hornets, and detrimental to the Knicks. Brunson, despite leading the team in scoring and dishing 13 assists, shot 0-for-6 on 3-pointers, while Mohamed Diawara went 1-for-4.

LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller added 22 and 21 points, respectively, while the Hornets shot 52.7% as a team overall. Charlotte's aggressiveness at the rim led to 20 trips to the free-throw line, where they shot 16-for-20 collectively.