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Knicks' Julius Randle ejected after arguing with referee over a no-call vs. Kings

New York Knicks forward Julius Randle posts up against Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes
Knicks forward Julius Randle lost his cool and was tossed on Sunday night. (John Jones/USA Today)

Julius Randle was having a great outing at Madison Square Garden on Sunday night.

At least he was, until he completely lost his cool.

The New York Knicks forward was ejected late in the third quarter of their 112-99 win over the Sacramento Kings after he picked up two quick technicals while arguing about a no-call.

Randle tried to go up for a bucket through Kings veteran Harrison Barnes in the lane, but he missed and was knocked to the court as the play went to the other end. By the time the Kings had made a layup and the Knicks had brought the ball back down the court, Randle was still yelling at an official on the sidelines, completely oblivious to the game that was still going on behind him.

He was quickly handed two technical fouls and tossed from the game.

While he may have a case for a foul there, his reaction clearly was an overreaction — especially considering the night he was having before that.

Randle had 27 points, eight rebounds and three assists when he was ejected. He shot 9-of-20 from the field, and was easily on pace to surpass his season-high of 36 points, which he hit late last month.

Randle, 28, entered Sunday night averaging 22.1 points and 8.7 rebounds per game this season, his fourth with the Knicks.

Despite not having Randle for the last stretch, the Knicks held on to take the 13-point win. They led nearly the entire way after a brief back and forth and held Sacramento to just one point in the final 101 seconds of the game. R.J. Barrett added 27 points and nine rebounds to lead the Knicks, and Jalen Brunson finished with 18 points. New York has now won four straight.

Domantas Sabonis led the Kings with 20 points and 12 rebounds, and Keegan Murray dropped 18 points. They’ve lost two of their last three, and are halfway through a six-game road trip.