MEMPHIS, Tenn. _ The Knicks' defense was nowhere to be found for three quarters. It finally showed up in the fourth, but it ended up being too little too late.
A game the Knicks trailed by 18 against a Grizzlies team with players mostly unrecognizable to people outside of Memphis ended in wild fashion. When the final seconds ticked off on the 105-99 loss, Courtney Lee had to be restrained as he was screaming at official Derrick Stafford.
With 17.8 seconds left in the game, Stafford called Lee for a technical foul with the Knicks down by three. Lee appeared to be jawing with Dillon Brooks. The Grizzlies (15-29) put the game away from there. Tyreke Evans made the technical foul. Then he made two more free throws with 12.8 seconds to go.
This was a bad way for the Knicks (20-25) to open their six-game trip against the Western Conference, as they lost for the 11th time in 14 games.
Grizzlies center Marc Gasol was not with the team because of an illness, while point guard Mike Conley Jr. remains sidelined with an Achilles injury. But the Grizzlies had no trouble scoring.
Kristaps Porzingis led the Knicks with 21 points, had nine rebounds and blocked six shots. Enes Kanter scored 20, but just two after halftime. Michael Beasley and Lee each had 18. Tim Hardaway Jr. returned from a one-game absence and had 16 points.
Evans led the Grizzlies with 23 points and 10 assists. JaMychal Green scored 18, and Brooks had 17.
The Knicks shot just 7-for-27 on 3-pointers, while Memphis was 10-for-28.
The Grizzlies only average 99 points per game. But they put up 32 in the first quarter, 61 at the half and had 88 after three.
Trailing 88-73 to start the fourth, the Knicks finally started playing defense. They held the Grizzlies scoreless for the first 3:56 of the fourth quarter and cut it to 88-80. But the Grizzlies connected on 3-pointers on their next two trips and went up 94-82.
The Knicks final started hitting some 3-pointers. They hit three and had a conventional three-point play on their next four scoring trips. They got within 98-94 after a Hardaway 3-pointer with 4:08 to go.
After getting stops on the next two defensive possessions, the Knicks turned it over consecutive times on their end. The Grizzlies took a 100-96 after a James' Ennis baseline with 2:52. The Knicks gave up two offensive rebounds on the trip.
Porzingis scored to get the Knicks back within four. It stayed that way until Green threw down an Evans miss that made it 102-96 with 1:34 remaining. Coming out of a timeout, Beasley missed a baseline jumper, but the Grizzlies couldn't convert on their end.
Lee drilled a 3-pointer with 48 seconds left to make it 102-99. Evans misfired for the Grizzlies, but Porzingis was called for a loose-ball foul with 25 seconds to go.
Lee then slapped the ball away from Evans, leading to a scramble and pileup on the floor. A jump ball was called with 17.8 seconds left. That's when the Knicks lost complete control. Lee was called for the technical.
Then after Memphis won the tap, Lee fouled Evans intentionally with 12.8 seconds remaining. Evans made both free throws to make it a six-point game.
Hardaway missed the last game for precautionary reasons after playing 33 minutes in Sunday's overtime loss to New Orleans.
The Knicks kept him inactive because they didn't want to risk anything happening after being sidelined for six weeks with a stress injury in his lower left leg. But Hardaway wasn't in any mood to discuss that decision.
"I'm ready to talk about Memphis," Hardaway said. "I'm not talking about last game, previous nights. Ready to go tonight."
Hardaway was one of a few Knicks who got off to a good start. Kanter scored 18, Porzingis 10, and Hardaway nine in the first half. He hit the Knicks only 3-pointer in the first half. They were a dismal 1-for-11.
The Knicks were 20-for-27 on two-point shots (74.1 percent) in the first half. Yet they were down eight at the half.
In the third, the Knicks were trading twos for 3s at one point, and the Grizzlies' lead grew to 78-60 with 6:46 left in the quarter. The Knicks were front-rimming 3-pointers, a sign that they were tired.
It was an 18-point game when Hornacek subbed out a few starters and had five reserves on the floor, including Hardaway, hoping for a spark. They got it, as the Knicks scored seven consecutive points to get within 82-71. But the Knicks were down 15 heading to the fourth.
