Knicks overcome an 18-point deficit in the 4th quarter to beat the Rockets 108-106

By Canadian Press on February 21, 2026.

NEW YORK (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns scored 25 points, Jalen Bruson had 20 and the New York Knicks overcame an 18-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Houston Rockets 108-106 on Saturday night.

OG Anunoby added 20 points, and Mikal Bridges had 11 for New York. The Knicks bounced back two nights after a disappointing loss to Eastern Conference-leading Detroit.

Kevin Durant scored 30 points for Houston. Jabari Smith Jr. had 21, Alperen Sengun added 16, and Amen Thompson had 12 points and 10 rebounds. The Rockets had won five a row.

The Knicks, who led by 13 points in the first half, began their comeback with an 8-1 run in the opening minutes of the fourth before Smith hit a 3-pointer in front of the Houston bench.

Houston missed eight consecutive shots and turned the ball over two times as the Knicks went on a 14-2 run, capped by Towns’ layup off the glass that cut it to 99-97 with 3:32 left.

Bruson’s jumper tied it at 103 with 1:26 left. Durant then lost the ball near the sideline and committed an offensive foul on the following possession as he plowed into Brunson.

Brunson answered with a pullup jumper that gave New York the lead for good. Durant had a chance to win it at the buzzer, but missed a 40-footer.

Up next

Rockets: Host Utah on Monday night.

Knicks: At Chicago on Sunday night.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Adry Torres, The Associated Press