Raptors Collapse in Second Half as Knicks Extend Dominance
For 24 minutes on Wednesday night, the Toronto Raptors looked like a team ready to make a statement. They defended with purpose, controlled the tempo, and had the New York Knicks on their heels. But basketball is a 48-minute game, and the second half told a much different story.
Toronto was outscored 72-41 after halftime in a 119-92 loss that snapped their four-game win streak and extended New York’s head-to-head dominance to 11 straight wins. The Raptors haven’t beaten the Knicks since January 2023, and they’ve yet to get the better of OG Anunoby since trading him to New York.
Anunoby made sure to remind his former team of what they gave up. The versatile forward finished with 26 points, five assists, six steals, and two blocks, including a third-quarter blow-by layup that gave New York its first lead of the game with 2:59 left in the frame. That bucket opened the floodgates.
Mikal Bridges followed with a third-quarter explosion of his own - 19 points on 7-of-8 shooting in the period - and finished with a game-high 30 points on an eye-popping 12-of-15 shooting night. His scoring outburst helped fuel a 27-4 Knicks run that turned a 12-point deficit into a 12-point lead in a matter of minutes.
Toronto’s defense, solid in the first half, unraveled completely. The Raptors had held New York to 6-of-20 shooting in the first quarter and just 4-of-19 from three in the first half. They took a 51-47 lead into the break, built largely on free throws (17-of-18) and second-chance points (plus-eight), despite shooting just 14-of-45 from the field.
But the third quarter was a meltdown. The Raptors turned the ball over eight times in the frame, allowing the Knicks to get out in transition and attack the paint at will. New York went 10-of-13 in the paint in the third and finished with 60 points in the paint overall - a plus-22 margin.
What made it sting even more for Toronto? Jalen Brunson, the Knicks’ engine, sat the final four minutes of the third with four fouls.
His absence didn’t slow New York down. Rookie Tyler Kolek stepped in and orchestrated the offense with poise, dishing out four assists in that stretch and finishing with 10 on the night.
It was a stark reminder of how deep and balanced this Knicks team has become.
To their credit, the Raptors tried to respond. Brandon Ingram was the lone bright spot offensively, finishing with 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting, along with six rebounds and three steals.
He poured in 10 points in the third quarter, including a spinning turnaround jumper and a smooth fadeaway that would’ve been highlight-reel material - if not for an offensive foul call that turned the tide. After that whistle, the Raptors were outscored 18-2 to close the quarter.
Ingram’s scoring wasn’t just efficient - it was timely. He snapped a six-minute scoring drought in the second quarter and tried to halt New York’s third-quarter surge, but he was fighting a losing battle. The Raptors offense became increasingly reliant on him, drifting away from Darko Rajakovic’s 0.5 offense - a system built on quick decisions and ball movement - and into isolation-heavy sets that iced out other contributors.
Toronto finished with just 20 assists on 30 made field goals, their lowest assist total since a Jan. 7 win over Charlotte. And while Ingram tried to carry the load, the rest of the starting lineup couldn’t find rhythm.
Scottie Barnes had 17 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists, but also committed five turnovers. RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, and Collin Murray-Boyles - returning from a thumb injury - combined to shoot just 7-of-24 for 25 points.
The Knicks, meanwhile, were surgical. They shot 50 percent from the field (45-of-90), including 10-of-19 from deep in the second half.
Toronto, by contrast, went just 1-of-9 from three after halftime and finished at 38 percent overall (30-of-79). It was a fourth-quarter runaway, with New York outscoring Toronto 37-22 to put the game away.
The win pushed the Knicks to 29-18 and vaulted them into second place in the Eastern Conference. The Raptors, now 29-20, sit in fourth, with Boston sandwiched between the two at 29-18. But the bigger concern for Toronto is their record against top-tier competition - they’re now just 1-9 against the top four teams in either conference and still haven’t faced the East-leading Detroit Pistons.
That’s the kind of stat that raises questions about how ready this team is for postseason play. The Raptors have shown flashes of potential - they’ve built leads, defended well in stretches, and have a go-to scorer in Ingram. But against elite opponents, the lapses are too frequent, and the margin for error is too small.
They’ll have a chance to regroup on Friday when they visit the Orlando Magic, before returning home for a five-game homestand. That next game will now be nationally televised in the U.S., replacing the Grizzlies-Pelicans matchup on ESPN. It’s a spotlight opportunity - and a chance to show the rest of the league that Wednesday’s collapse was a bump in the road, not a sign of what’s to come.