Playing their sixth game in nine days, Derek Fisher’s New York Knicks faced one of the most athletic teams in the NBA on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden, and the home team simply couldn’t keep up with their cross country counterparts.

It has been a tough season for the Knicks, an the last week-and-a-half have been particularly challenging. The Los Angeles Clippers came to town as the most latest in a line of four certain playoff squads New York has faced in a six-game span, including three in the last four nights. Like those other competitors, the Clippers had plenty to play for, with the race for Western Conference seeding on their minds and LA showed why they’re one of the league’s toughest matchups in a 110-80 win over the Knicks at MSG.

“They’re athletic, they’re fast, they’re strong,” Derek said of the Clippers. “A lot of our guys have seen this maybe once. And a number of guys who played tonight weren’t even on our team the last time we played the Clippers, so you don’t really understand the speed and force these guys play with until you’re out there against it. I don’t know if guys were intimidated, but it definitely can set you back once the game starts.”

The Knicks were indeed set back from the opening tip. The Clips shot 57.1 percent in the first quarter, while the Knicks turned the ball over six times to fall behind 28-17 after one. Athletic big man DeAndre Jordan led the way for Los Angeles, going 4-of-4 in the first. He finished 7-of-7 with 14 points in 10 rebounds.

The Clippers again shot 57.1 percent in the second quarter, and new Knick Ricky Ledo tried to lead a counterattack, hitting twice from beyond the arc, but turnovers were again an issue. Ledo coughed it up four times, and the Knicks had eight turnovers in the second, leading to nine easy points for L.A.

With his team trailing 63-33 at the break, Coach Fish gave his team a message he has delivered often this year: Just keep fighting and keep playing with pride.

“Still show the proper respect to themselves and to the game, to keep playing and not play the score,” Fish said of his halftime message. “It’s obviously tough for these guys to go out there and continue to try to fight. We’re playing really good teams, we’re in a really tough stretch and we’re overmatched in a lot of ways, but our guys, they’re not quitting. It’s tough out there. We seem to lose a body every night or each day, so just reminding them to keep playing and take pride in who they are and what they’ve tried to accomplish this year.”

The young Knicks tried to lead a comeback after the break. Cleanthony Early tallied eight points off 3-of-3 shooting from the field, while Langston Galloway added five and a pair of assists. Early finished with a career-high 18 points, but throughout the rookie’s big night, the Clippers just kept attacking.

Los Angeles shot 64.7 percent in the third quarter, and by the time the final frame arrived, it was a 90-54 washout. The Knicks won the final frame, shooting 50 percent behind a 3-of-4, eight-point effort from Quincy Acy, but it was too little too late in the defeat.

The Knicks were without the injured Alexey Shved, as well as Tim Hardaway Jr., who is still sidelined with a sprained right wrist—not to mention injured stars Carmelo Anthony and Jose Calderon.

New York shot just 35.4 percent on the night and turned the ball over 20 times, and it also managed just 18 points in the paint. Derek talked afterward about the rough night offensively, and how the Knicks struggled to find offense in the absence of their best creators on that end of the floor.

“Some of our guys who are playmakers and facilitators for us like Alexey and Tim are out right now,” Coach Fish explained. “That would help us but some of it is also fatigue. We have some guys who are playing really big minutes and taking on big responsibilities, and to do that every night, it takes a lot. It’s not by design, we don’t want to be a jump-shooting team, but we’re definitely having problems getting to the interior of the opponent’s defense.”

NEXT UP

The Knicks (14-58) will take Thursday off before returning at home, where they’ll try to play spoiler for their rival Boston Celtics (31-40).

Boston currently sits in a tie for eighth place in the Eastern Conference with the Indiana Pacers. Right on their heels are both the Brooklyn Nets and Charlotte Hornets, just half a game back, each at 30-40.

This will be the fourth and final meeting between the Knicks and the C’s this year. New York took Round 1 in Boston before losing the second and third contests against the Celtics.

Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET from Manhattan’s MSG.

RELATED LINKS

• Fisher: It’s tough, but Knicks not quitting (MSG, March 25, 2015)
• Jordan goes 7-for-7, Clippers pound Knicks (AP, March 25, 2015)
• Clippers at Knicks: Game Book (NBA, March 25, 2015)
• Knicks will be shorthanded again while facing Clippers (NYDN, March 24, 2015)
• Woodson returns to Garden as Clippers blow out Knicks (NYDN, March 25, 2015)
• Jordan ‘loves’ NYC, puts on a show at MSG (NY Post, March 25, 2015)