Derek Fisher’s New York Knicks closed their tough Western Conference road trip with tests against two of the fastest offensive teams in the NBA, including the league-leading Golden State Warriors.

Fish had his squad ready to meet those challenges, and the Knicks held leads after the first quarter of both games, but they ultimately couldn’t keep up in either, falling 125-94 to the Warriors on Saturday and 102-89 to the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.

“It’s tough for these guys to have the losses we have and have these experiences, even for young guys, its tough,” Coach Fish said of his squad after Saturday night’s loss to Golden State. “We still have to applaud them for continuing to do what they’re trying to do. Nobody is going to feel sorry for us, but they still keep coming back.”

BATTLING THE BEST

Coming off a win over the Los Angeles Lakers, the Knicks looked ready early to take on the NBA’s best.

New York was humming early, as Langston Galloway, Alexey Shved and Andrea Bargnani had eight, seven and six points, respectively, including a combined three hits from beyond the arc from Galloway and Shved.

Defensively, the Knicks held the high-flying Warriors to just 37.5 percent shooting from the field, including a combined 4-of-12 shooting from guard duo Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. The two-sided effort had the Knicks out to a 27-26 lead after one.

However, in the second, that Golden State offense could be contained no longer. It started with the reserve unit. Justin Holiday, David Lee, Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala combined to shoot 12-of-13 and tally 29 points. Then for good measure, Curry and Thompson added another 16 on 5-of-7 shooting.

Altogether, the Warriors shot an appalling 78.3 percent from the floor, including an 8-of-9 mark from three-point range, netting them 47 points. The Knicks were solid offensively, going for 25 points, but that defensive lapse put them in a 73-52 hole going into the half.

“We weren’t committed to defending at the level you need to, especially against a team as good as the Warriors,” D-Fish said. “I thought the first quarter we did a good job, on the offensive end, of getting high quality shots, and that allowed us to defend better. In the second quarter, we got caught up playing more their style of game and they showed why they’re the best in the league.”

Golden State kept firing in the third, shooting 61.9 percent behind 23 points from the Splash Brothers: Curry and Thompson. The Warriors tacked on another 38 points in the third period and had the game well in hand, 111-73 before the final frame.

“They have a lot of really good players. They’re very versatile. They can handle the ball, shoot the ball,” Derek said of the Warriors. “Once the momentum starts to turn, especially in this building, you can get caught up trying to get back at them, and it really requires some mental toughness to still play a possession game. We ran into that tonight.”

New York had five men in double figures on the night: Bargnani led the way with 18, Shved turned in 14 and Galloway had 10 in the starting lineup. Then off the bench, Tim Hardaway Jr. tallied 13 and Cleanthony Early added 10. However, the Knicks just couldn’t keep up with the torrid pace set by Golden State.

PHOENIX RISES

After traveling across the country and playing five games in seven days, the Knicks looked very much like a team that did just that after playing the Suns.

New York came away battered and bruised: Hardaway suffered a minor wrist injury but did return. Early rolled his ankle couldn’t come back, and the Knicks simply couldn’t continue to battle through four full quarters in Phoenix.

“The Suns continue to make the plays that a team like theirs, still competing for a playoff position in the West, makes—plays that make the difference in games,” Derek said. “We had some guys in foul trouble, we lost a couple bodies and we just couldn’t sustain the fight necessary to give ourselves a chance down the stretch.”

For the second straight night, the Knicks jumped out to a first-quarter lead. Shved and Bargnani were strong once again, combining for 13 points. Galloway chipped in four, and Lance Thomas added another six.

New York shot an even 50 percent in the first, and it applied some outstanding defensive pressure. The Knicks forced seven first-period turnovers, resulting in 13 easy points. They led by as many as 11 early on and were up 29-23 for the second quarter.

With that second unit coming in, the Knicks slowed offensively in the second, shooting 42.1 percent, including a 0-for-4 mark from deep. After scoring 29 in the first, they managed just 19 in the second, and the Suns rebounded to shoot 55.6 percent to cut the lead to just one, 48-47, at halftime.

“It seemed like early in the game, maybe before the fatigue sets in, guys are able to get a lot done out there,” Fish explained. “Guys are coming out and really establishing a good tone, in terms of how to move the ball and share the ball offensively, but we’re having a tough time sustaining that as we go to the bench and as the lineup starts changing. We’ll have to keep working at that.”

Then in the third quarter, the home team took over. New York still couldn’t regain its offensive rhythm, shooting just 37.5 percent. Meanwhile, the Suns picked it up, pounding it inside with Marcus Morris and Brandan Wright. The two combined for 15 points, as the Suns outscored the Knicks 12-4 in the paint and claimed a 75-66 lead going into the fourth quarter.

In the fourth, the Knicks tried to battle back behind Bargnani, who led the charge with nine points, but the Suns countered with a heavy dose of Eric Bledsoe. The Phoenix guard had eight points, three rebounds and two assists. With that, the Suns held off New York’s comeback try and sealed a 13-point victory.

Afterward, Derek said that the Suns didn’t do much adjustment throughout the game, but the Knicks just didn’t deal with the pressure they brought defensively.

“Like most teams, they tried to bring a little more pressure and tried to disrupt the timing for us offensively,” Coach Fish said. “Sometimes that causes problems. They didn’t change much; we just couldn’t continue to do the things we were doing early. We had a lot of foul trouble and we just couldn’t keep the fight going.”

NEXT UP

The Knicks (13-53) return home Tuesday, but they’ll take on yet another Western Conference contender, the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs (41-24).

New York lost its first meeting with the defending champs this year, a 109-95 loss on Dec. 10.

The Spurs have begun to hit their late-season stride, winning seven of their last eight games—most recently a 123-97 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET from Madison Square Garden.

RELATED LINKS

• Fisher’s comments after Knicks loss to Suns (MSG, March 15, 2015)
• Fisher: Warriors showed why they’re the best in the league (MSG, March 14, 2015)
• Bledsoe just misses triple-double, Suns beat Knicks (AP, March 14, 2015)
• Curry bags birthday double-double as Warriors wallop Knicks (AP, March 15, 2015)
• Knicks at Suns: Game Book (NBA.com, March 15, 2015)
• Knicks at Warriors: Game Book (NBA.com, March 14, 2015)