SALT LAKE CITY — There was no sugarcoating an ugly first-half performance from the Knicks in the locker room, and the harsh words during the break helped spur a comeback in Wednesday’s 134-117 victory over the Jazz.
“It was our halftime speech, in terms of how we came at each other, where we tried to hold each other accountable,” Clarkson said. “And then just came out here and wanted to win.”
What was the message?
“Get our s–t together,” said Clarkson, adding that the discussion was started by the coaches before the players took over.
The Knicks responded by picking up the defense and, more important, being careful with the ball on offense. Coach Mike Brown broke down the tale of two halves.
“We committed eight turnovers for 14 points [in the first half] and a lot of them were unforced,” the coach said. “A lot of those turnovers led to easy baskets in transition for Utah. They had 27 fast-break points in that first half, the way we calculate it.
“We cleaned both those areas at halftime. We had just four turnovers in the second half, giving up four points off those turnovers, and then we gave up just five fast-break points in the second half. And that was the difference in the game. We gave ourselves an opportunity to shoot the basketball. And when we did, it obviously went in.”
The Knicks outscored the Jazz 78-52 in the second half. And that happened after a fire was lit under the players at halftime.
“It helped us win,” Brunson said.
Barring a shocking NBA Finals matchup, there will be no Stephen Curry at MSG this season.
The Golden State guard, who has missed the past 15 games with a bone bruise in his right knee, will be re-evaluated in 10 days, the team announced Wednesday.
That means the game at MSG on March 15 is off the table.
Curry, 37, has 10 straight wins at MSG, including last year during his 28-point performance.
He scored 54 points at the Garden in 2013.
Josh Hart was ruled out of Wednesday’s game with knee soreness.
He was replaced in the lineup by Landry Shamet, although the starters struggled as a unit in Utah.
With Clarkson catching fire and carrying the Knicks to a comeback win, Mikal Bridges was benched in the fourth quarter Wednesday for a second straight game.
Bridges had just five points in 27 minutes.
