NEW YORK (AP) — Jalen Brunson scored 34 points to lead the New York Knicks to a 119-110 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday.
It was the 68th 30-plus point game in Brunson’s career as a Knick, and it helped New York improve to 28-16. Mikal Bridges added 26 points, while New York swingman Josh Hart chipped in with 14 points. Hart had suffered a cervical compression in the neck in the Knicks’ 116-99 loss to the Timberwolves on Friday night.
Despite Trae Young leading seven Hawks in double-figure scoring with 27, Atlanta fell to 22-20 and had its three-game winning streak snapped. De’Andre Hunter added 22 points off the bench.
In a 16-second span midway through the fourth quarter, Brunson converted a backdoor layup to give the Knicks a 107-100 lead and on the ensuing possession drew a charge from Dyson Daniels. New York cruised the rest of the way.
Takeaways
Hawks: Atlanta’s offensive efficiency gave New York fits. The Hawks shot 47.1% from the field and 43.3% from 3.
Knicks: Karl-Anthony Towns was rusty in his first game back after sitting out New York’s previous two with a sprained right thumb. He finished with 13 points on 5-of-18 shooting, nine rebounds and seven assists.
Key moment
Towns’ 3-pointer with 5:52 remaining extended New York’s lead to 110-100.
Key stat
Daniels, who entered the contest leading the NBA in steals (113) and steals per game (3.1), recorded three steals in the game.
Up next
The Knicks cross the East River for an interborough matchup with the Nets on Tuesday night. The game will be Bridges’ first game at the Barclays Center since last summer’s blockbuster trade in which the Knicks sent five first-round draft picks to the Nets for the swingman. Atlanta hosts the Pistons on Wednesday night.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Denis P. Gorman, The Associated Press
