Dec. 12, 1963 - Three old pros took up the slack tonight as the Cincinnati Royals, minus Oscar Robertson and Jerry Lucas, defeated the New York Knickerbockers, 112-102. Jack Twyman (right) led the Royals with 31 points, his high for the season, but it was his defensive performance that hurt the Knicks as much as his offensive work. Twyman held Johnny Green scoreless in the first half and stole the ball eight times as the Royals repeatedly broke up New York scoring attempts. Robertson was on the sidelines with a pulled thigh muscle and Lucas with a bruised lower back. Wayne Embry pulled down 25 rebounds to lead the Royals to an 83-53 margin while scoring 26 points. Arlen Bockhorn took over Robertson’s playmaking role with 13 assists while scoring 12 points. Len Chappell’s 28 points led the Knicks. For the Royals, this was a third victory in the last four games and the ninth in the last 12, giving them some momentum for another meeting with the division-leading Celtics Saturday night in Boston. It is not known whether Robertson and Lucas will be available for that game.
