Oct. 17, 1964 - The 19th edition of the New York Knickerbockers made its debut before the largest opening-night crowd in five years at Madison Square Garden tonight. The new Knicks made a good impression even though they were beaten by the Los Angeles Lakers, 113-109, in the last minute.
Elgin Baylor, as he has on so many other occasions, proved to be too much for the Knicks to handle, despite their fine effort. Taking command with the Knicks leading, 105-99, and less than four minutes to play, Baylor scored 9 points and made a key rebound down the stretch.
His driving 3-pointer gave the Lakers a 106-105 lead inside the two-minute mark. A little later, his driving hook shot made the margin 3. And when Johnny Egan’s jump shot tied the score for the last time at 109-109, there was Baylor leading the pack in the other direction and being fouled from behind in the act of shooting.
Elgin sank the two free throws with 37 seconds left on the clock. A few moments later, when Bob Boozer missed a shot for the Knicks, Baylor helped deflect the rebound towards Jerry West. West then killed all but six seconds of the remaining time and dropped in the 2 insurance points when finally fouled.
Having Baylor and West take a game away from you in the closing minutes is no disgrace, however, and for the Knicks, who have been living in the Eastern Division cellar for five years, tonight’s performance must be counted encouraging.
The crowd of 12,584, largest to attend a Knick opener since 1959, when Wilt Chamberlain’s debut was the attraction, saw lots of action and a Knick team vastly improved in speed, defense, and hustle. The problems that remain seem to center around firepower.
Two rookies, Howie Komives in back court and Willis Reed, the 6-9 center, made a bit hit with the crowd. Komives can move, shoot, and defend. He was the country’s top scorer last year at Bowling Green and seems to have variety and sense to his shots. He scored 19 points, made seven assists, picked up seven rebounds, and played 44 minutes.
Reed played 28 minutes, and when he fouled out with 4:35 to go, he got a standing ovation. He scored 15 points and had 11 rebounds. He too can move and looked rugged defensively. Willis is from Grambling College, where he was a top scorer in small-college ranks.

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