It’s an Atlantic Division battle on the hardwood as a pair of teams, one on the right side of the playoff cut line and one not, collide in search of a win in the Big Apple. The Toronto Raptors are on the road as they travel to take on the New York Knicks Saturday night. Toronto comes in off a 116-110 home loss to Chicago in their previous game, failing to cover the line as a two-point underdog Thursday night. New York downed Washington 113-109 at home in the second game of a back-to-back Thursday night though they failed to cover as a 12-point favorite. In the all-time regular season series between the teams, the Raptors own a 61-47 advantage but the Knicks have taken both meetings this season. That includes a 136-130 home win in the most recent matchup on December 11, 2023.

New York Knicks Battling Fatigue as They Look to Keep Winning

New York won their second straight and their eighth in the last 10 games as they managed to outlast the Wizards in the second game of a back-to-back situation at home Thursday night. The Knicks improved to 25-17 on the season and stood third in the Atlantic Division, seven games behind the Celtics for the top spot. They were fifth in the Eastern Conference standings entering Friday, one game ahead of the Heat to maintain a guaranteed playoff spot. Against Washington, New York led by 10 in the first quarter but found themselves even at the end of the stanza. The Knicks were up one at the half and after three quarters. They led by nine with 58.1 seconds to play but had to hang on as the Wizards tried to push their way back into the game. New York shot 45.3% from the field, including 13 of 38 from three-point range, and overcame 17 turnovers in the victory. Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 41 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in the victory.

For the year, the Knicks are 17th in the league in scoring offense with 114.9 points per contest entering this game. New York is 5th in the league in rebounding as they collect 46 rebounds per game while they are 29th in the league in assists by dishing out 24 dimes per contest. The Knicks are 3rd in the league in scoring defense by allowing 110.8 points per contest. Jalen Brunson (26.3 points, 6.5 assists) and Julius Randle (24.2 points, 9.1 rebounds, 4.8 assists) are the top two scoring options for the Knicks this season. OG Anunoby (15.1 points, 4.2 rebounds), Quentin Grimes, Donte DiVincenzo (11.2 points), Isaiah Hartenstein, Mitchell Robinson, Precious Achiuwa, Malachi Flynn and Josh Hart are key contributors for coach Tom Thibodeau. New York is 23rd in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 46.5% from the floor as a team. The Knicks are 12th in the league in threes per game as they knock down 13.2 triples a night while they are 12th in three-point shooting by hitting 37.3% of their attempts from beyond the arc.

Toronto Raptors Hoping to Score a Road Victory

Toronto battled but came up on the short end of the scoreboard at home against Chicago Thursday night in their previous game. The Raptors fell to 16-26 on the season and stood last in the Atlantic Division, 16 games behind the Celtics for the top spot. They were 12th in the Eastern Conference standings entering Friday, 8.5 games behind the Pacers for the final guaranteed playoff spot and 2.5 games back of the Hawks for the final spot in the play-in tournament. Against Chicago, Toronto trailed by 11 after the opening quarter and by as many as 12 early in the second quarter before leading by one late in the half. The Raptors gave up six unanswered points to trail by five at the half. Toronto was down as many as 13 in the third quarter before regrouping to take a 107-103 lead with 4:15 to play before running out of gas. The Raptors were outscored 13-3 the rest of the way to wind up with the loss. Toronto shot 50.6% from the field, including 10 of 38 from three-point range, and allowed Chicago to shoot 52.7% in the contest. Scottie Barnes had 31 points, seven rebounds and six assists to lead the Raptors in the loss.

This season, Toronto stands 16th in scoring offense as they put up an average of 115 points per game on the season. The Raptors are 12th in rebounding with 43.9 boards a night while they are 2nd by dishing out an average of 29.6 assists a night. Toronto stands 18th in scoring defense as they allow an average of 116.3 points a night this season. Scottie Barnes is leading Toronto this season in scoring as he puts up an average of 20.4 points, 8.4 rebounds and 5.6 assists for the Raptors. RJ Barrett (18.8 points, five rebounds), Bruce Brown (12.1 points, 4.7 rebounds, three assists), Dennis Schroder (14.3 points, 6.5 assists) and Gary Trent Jr. (11.6 points) are each averaging in double figures. Toronto looks to Jakob Poeltl (10.6 points, 8.3 rebounds), Immanuel Quickley (15.8 points), Chris Boucher, Jordan Nwora, Otto Porter Jr., Gradey Dick, Garrett Temple and Jalen McDaniels to provide some sort of secondary scoring punch. The Raptors are 10th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 48.2% from the floor as a team. Toronto stands 24th by knocking down 11.9 three-pointers a night while they are 20th in three-point field goal percentage as they sink 35.8% of their attempts on the season.