The scrappy Knicks put up a fight but lost to a team with much more on the line.
With the fifth seed locked up, the Knicks sat Jalen Brunson and Mitchell Robinson — who both joined the injured Julius Randle on the inactive list — and snapped a five-game winning streak with a 113-105 defeat Friday night to the Pelicans.
For New Orleans (42-39), the victory pushed it above the Lakers for the seventh spot in the West with one game remaining.
