The New York Knicks dropped the first quarter of this contest by a 12-point margin, and it looked like the Phoenix Suns would crush the Knicks with ease. New York would rally to tie the game in the fourth quarter and after an incredible performance from star guard Jalen Brunson, the Knicks looked poised to get a big defensive stop and get a chance to take the lead or send it to overtime. Instead, Devin Booker would take and make one a three-pointer with under 2 seconds remaining and drill a crowd silencer, sealing the Knicks’ fate.
In a hard-fought battle against a Suns team lacking Bradley Beal and Kevin Durant, the Knicks drop this one by three points in a rousing matchup at Madison Square Garden.
Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle Shine in Knicks’ Close Loss
As I opened with, Jalen Brunson was simply incredible in this loss, he dropped 35 points and had eight assists while shooting 60% from the field and draining five of his 10 attempts from beyond the arc. Brunson has been remarkable in November, as entering tonight’s game he had a 47.1% three-point percentage and averaged 25.8 points a night, looking like he could improve on his marvelous debut season in the blue and orange.
Despite his heroics, the Knicks fell short in their comeback, and his running mate Julius Randle didn’t lack in production either. Randle, who has struggled with efficiency to open the year, shot 47.6% from the field for 28 points and five rebounds, and while the efficiency has been better as of late, he still has ways to go for the field goal percentage to get to where it needs to be, he still looked great in this matchup.
Immanuel Quickley would add 18 points of his own on 11 shots and eight free throws, and while he was solid on the night, the Knicks just couldn’t get anybody else going scoring-wise. as RJ Barrett shot just 3-11 from the field for nine points, Quentin Grimes shot 1-5 for three points, Josh Hart 1-3 for four points, and Donte DiVincenzo added six points on 2-6 shooting.
Weirdly enough, the Knicks were outrebounded by nine (47-38) and while Mitchell Robinson added 11 rebounds, they were struggling to get those second-chance opportunities. The Suns shot 46.2% from the field and 42.1% from three, and the Knicks shot 44.8% from the field and 40% from three, which makes the lack of rebounds even more crushing. It just wasn’t the game New York was looking for in terms of physicality, as they couldn’t keep the Suns from scoring and couldn’t bring down enough boards.
The Knicks fall to 9-7 on the season, and they’ll look to rebound against the Hornets as they try to advance in the in-season tournament on Tuesday night in Madison Square Garden.