The New York Knicks moved one game closer to locking up the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference for the 2012 NBA Playoffs with a 99-93 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night. New York just needs to win their regular season finale against the Charlotte Bobcats this Thursday, or have the Philadelphia 76ers lose their final game to secure a date with the 2-seed Miami Heat in the first round.
The Knicks led by as many as 18 points in the fourth quarter. Blake Griffin got hot, however, scoring 11 points during a 21-4 run to pull the Clippers within one point with just 52 seconds to play. J.R. Smith then scored four of the Knicks last five points of the game to help seal the win. Smith led New York with 21 points on 7-for-13 shooting from the floor. Carmelo Anthony pitched in 17 points and six rebounds during the game.
Griffin led all players with 29 points and 10 rebounds. Randy Foye pitched in another 28 points and DeAndre Jordan added 10 rebounds in the losing effort. Los Angeles committed 13 turnovers to just eight for New York.
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