Jalen Brunson scored a season-low 12 points on 3-of-14 shooting, but the Knicks pulled away from the Networks how Sunday’s 114-104 final at MSG gave New York a pair of wins over Brooklyn in three days.
among others, Karl-Anthony Towns stepped up with a game-high 26 points and 15 rebounds as the Knicks (7-6) climbed back over the .500 mark for the first time in two-plus weeks.
“It’s frustrating, on the one hand,” said Cam Johnsonwho led the Nets (5-9) with 22 points on 7-of-12 shooting. “Otherwise, I think the big moment in the game was when Karl started scoring in that third quarter and demanded a lot of attention and that put a lot of stress on us defensively.
“So that’s the problem they present. With them, it’s not just one guy you have to worry about.”
In 34 minutes, Brunson dished out 10 assists and grabbed five rebounds.
“That’s what I love about Jalen — he’s going to keep going,” said Tom Thibodeau. “… As long as we’re winning, Jalen feels good. It says a lot about him, and we’ve got some guys that are like that.”
While Brunson struggled to score, he made his presence felt as the Knicks tallied 33 assists while every member of the starting five tallied 20 points or more.
“He did a great job commanding the game today,” Towns said. “When the double teams came to him, he made the right pass every time.”
As the Knicks gather, a quick turnaround awaits with Monday’s 7:30 pm matchup against the Washington Wizards and a five-game road trip that begins Wednesday at the Phoenix Suns.
“Offensively, I think we’re finding it pretty good,” said Mikal Bridgeswho scored 21 points on 9-of-18 shooting. “But it’s a journey. We still have to get better. We have a long way to go.”
