Knicks know what's at stake vs. Bucks - New York Daily News

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Knicks know what's at stake vs. Bucks - New York Daily News Mar 26th 2012, 00:08 The trained and clichéd response is to say that every game is equally important. So it was interesting that one Knick after another refused to dismiss questions about Monday's game against Milwaukee at the Garden. The Knicks, with photos of the Larry O'Brien championship trophy suddenly adorning their locker room, are relishing the chance to finally put some distance between themselves and the No.9 Bucks for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. A win Monday represents the difference between a 2 ½ game cushion and a precarious half-game lead. A seventh victory in eight games under new coach Mike Woodson also would get the Knicks back to .500 (25-25) and would enable them to look ahead in the standings, rather than just behind them in the playoff chase. "It's a huge game. Both teams know what's at stake," said Tyson Chandler, who tied his season-high with 17 rebounds in Saturday's 22-point win over the Pistons. "We have an opportunity to move (another) game ahead of them. So it's huge. We have to make sure we get rest (Sunday), come in with focus and make sure we get this next game." Chandler and the Knicks didn't practice Sunday after finishing a stretch of four games in five nights with a 3-1 record, also including a key win last Wednesday against Atlantic-leading Philadelphia. Woodson noted the importance of finding his players some rest within the condensed schedule, and he even said "hopefully we can continue to have some blowouts" to accomplish that. Jared Jeffries (knee) will be sidelined approximately two weeks, the Knicks said Saturday, but banged-up starters Amar'e Stoudemire (lower back stiffness) and Jeremy Lin (sore left knee) both said they expect to play Monday after sitting out the fourth quarter against Detroit. "Milwaukee is going to be a tough one. It's very, very important for us," Stoudemire said. "We're trying to make a run here. We're trying to do something special as far as playoff standings and our division chances." With those goals in mind, Chandler also brought the championship ring he won last year with Dallas to show his teammates Saturday night, at the suggestion of manager of player security Max (Big Max) Cayard. "Tyson talks a lot about sacrifice, defense and just putting everything aside in terms of individual stuff, whether it's off the court, on the court, egos, roles, whatever," said Lin, who had seven turnovers and just three assists against the Pistons. "He just talks about how we all have to buy in and only care about the team and the team only." The Knicks have 17 games remaining, and all but one (April 25 against the Clippers) will be against Eastern Conference teams. Two of those games will be against the Bucks, also including a road game on April 11. "Every game counts right now and we're trying to win 'em all. It starts on Monday," Iman Shumpert said. "It's a real big game for us, going up against them, fighting for that 8th spot," Carmelo Anthony said. "We want to continue the way we've been playing, but as far as that game goes, it's a very big game for us. We need that game and we're going to do everything in our power to get it." This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers. Five Filters recommends: Donate to Wikileaks.

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