Game Day Preview: Nets at Knicks, and Win No. 15 in a Row Is Right There

Two days off after Philly, and the schedule hands us the one opponent we haven't lost to in almost four years. The 1-5 Brooklyn Nets visit the 2-4 Knicks at Madison Square Garden tonight, with tip at 7:30 PM ET / 6:30 PM CT, per ESPN. This one should be a win, and I'll say it plainly: it needs to be. ESPN's DraftKings line has us as 14.5-point favorites, and the Knicks have won 14 straight in this series, per the AP.

I'm not taking Brooklyn lightly, though. Their record is uglier than their games were. They opened with five straight losses, but two of them were by four points at Cleveland and one point at Boston, per ESPN's results. Then last night they finally broke through, 98-90 in Indiana, with Michael Porter Jr. scoring 23 and Julius Randle adding 20, per the AP. That means they're on the second night of a back-to-back, which is exactly when you want to catch a team.

Where I think this game gets won

The matchup I'm watching is our wings against Porter. He leads Brooklyn at 21.2 points a game, per ESPN, and he had 25 on us in last November's blowout. This is the night for Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby to be on the floor together and make him work for everything. And yeah, I'd love to see him find his shot against his old team after a rough first week.

The numbers that matter are all about possessions. Brooklyn is turning it over 19.0 times a game, and we're at 15.5, per ESPN's team stats. Mike Brown said after Philly that we have to hit singles, per RealGM, and a sloppy team on a back-to-back is the perfect chance to finally win the turnover battle and run. Then there's the glass. We're pulling down 47.7 rebounds a night to Brooklyn's 44.5, and Cat is averaging 13.5 boards on his own, per ESPN. Both teams are shooting 42% from the field and 35% from three, so the extra shots are where the gap lives.

I want balance, too. Cat at the five, dragging their bigs out to the arc, and then Jalen Brunson (25.5 a night, per ESPN) and Tyler Kolek (6.2 assists) attacking a paint with nobody home. Brooklyn is giving up 116.0 points a game, per ESPN. If we don't get to 115 tonight, something went wrong.

Who's in, who's out, and how to watch

Here's the NBA's official injury report as of 12:00 PM ET. Brooklyn hadn't submitted its list yet at that point:

• Knicks: Jose Alvarado (left ankle sprain) is questionable. He was listed out earlier in the week.
• Nets: not yet submitted to the league. ESPN lists Egor Demin (right leg bruise) and Tyler Bilodeau (right shoulder sprain) out, and rookie Mikel Brown Jr. day-to-day after resting last night.

As for TV, ESPN lists YES on DAZN on Brooklyn's side and NBA League Pass for out-of-market fans. It doesn't list the Knicks' home feed, so check your local listings for that.

The last time out, LeBron took over late in Philly and we lost 98-93. If you missed it, catch up with our Morning After: https://knicks365.com/blog/knicks-76ers-recap-lebron-late-cup-opener-2-4. And for the history behind tonight's streak, read this morning's Battle for the Boroughs: https://knicks365.com/blog/knicks-nets-battle-for-the-boroughs-history.

Make it 15. Clean up the turnovers, own the glass, and start climbing back toward the team that hung a banner in June.