Wisconsin had two players score more than 20 points, but the Herd fell to the Westchester Knicks 124-117 Tuesday night at the Westchester County Center.
The Herd (2-5), which sit in last place in the Eastern Conference of the NBA G League, were led by forward Henry Ellenson, who scored 26 points and grabbed five rebounds on 8-for-15 shooting. Guard James Akinjo finished the game with 24 points off the bench on 7-for-18 shooting and dished out nine assists. Guard Terence Davis added 16 points and six assists while forward AJ Johnson, who is on assignment from the Milwaukee Bucks, finished with 15 points.
Wisconsin shot 50.6% from the floor as a team and 48.6% from beyond the arc. The Herd were outrebounded 53-31 and turned the ball over 15 times compared to Westchester’s 12 turnovers.
The Knicks (5-4) were led by New York Knicks two-way forward Jacob Toppin, who scored a game-high 38 points and grabbed five rebounds on 11-for-21 shooting. Forward T.J. Warren finished with 26 points while forward Chuma Okeke added 17 points and guard Tyler Kolek scored 15 points.
Westchester shot 41.1% from the field and 34.3% from 3-point range. The Knicks reached the foul line eight more times than the Herd, converting on 19 of their 21 attempts.
The two teams traded baskets to begin the first quarter until Warren converted on a reverse-layup and the Knicks went on a 6-0 run to take an 8-2 lead. Wisconsin was able to keep the Westchester lead to single digits until Warren knocked down a 3-pointer with five minutes to go in the period as the Knicks embarked on a 10-0 run to build a 15-point advantage. The Herd responded with a driving dunk from Johnson and a jumper from Akinjo, and Wisconsin outscored the Knicks 17-8 for the remainder of the quarter to cut Westchester’s lead to 38-32 at the break.
The Knicks opened up a double-digit lead for the majority of the second quarter after Westchester knocked down two 2-point free throws and Toppin added a running layup to lead by 12 points. Wisconsin’s Stephen Thompson cut the deficit to single digits with a 3-pointer midway through the period, but the Knicks responded with a 10-0 run to lead 64-47. Wisconsin’s offense started to heat up in the late stages of the second quarter, and the Herd ended the period on an 11-5 run to trail 73-64 at the half.
The Herd came out strong after halftime and went on a 9-2 run midway through the third quarter to tie the game at 80. Ellenson put Wisconsin on top with a running dunk and Davis connected on a 3-pointer to put the Herd up 94-92. Westchester responded with a 3-pointer to retake the lead, but the Herd’s Tyler Smith hammered home an alley-oop and Ellenson hit a 3-pointer to give Wisconsin a 99-97 advantage going into the fourth quarter.
The Herd maintained at least a one-point lead for the majority of the opening four minutes of the final quarter, but Toppin slammed in a driving dunk and Ariel Hukporti converted on a putback-layup to give the Knicks a 108-105 lead. Akinjo tied the game after he knocked down a free throw on a technical foul and a 2-point free throw, but Hukporti scored four straight points and Okeke knocked down a 3-pointer to put Westchester up seven. With under a minute to play, Akinjo cut the Kicks lead to five points with a 3-pointer, but Westchester converted on its free throws down the stretch to claim a seven-point victory.
The Herd will take on Westchester once again Wednesday night at the Westchester County Center in White Plains, New York, at 6 p.m. You can watch the game on ESPN+ or locally on TV-32.
