New York (AFP) – Jalen Brunson scored 42 points as the New York Knicks unleashed a late barrage to overwhelm the Houston Rockets 124-118 in the NBA on Monday. The Knicks were humbled at home by the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday and looked to be sliding to another defeat at Madison Square Garden as Houston powered into an 11-point lead early in the fourth quarter.
But Houston’s double-digit lead was the cue for a New York scoring spree that saw the Knicks erupt for an astonishing 46-point fourth quarter that turned the contest on its head. Brunson led the charge with 17 points in the fourth, putting the seal on the comeback with two late free throws to wrap up a win that leaves New York third in the Eastern Conference standings. Brunson received offensive support from Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges, who both chipped in with 22 points apiece, while Josh Hart also made double figures with 19 points.
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Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau saluted his team’s ability to dig themselves out of a hole and grab victory against the third-ranked team in the Western Conference. “You have to win games different ways,” Thibodeau said. “We got in a hole but we found a way to win — I loved the way we responded in the fourth quarter. Whatever it was going to take, we were going to do.”
In other games, the Oklahoma City Thunder took full advantage of an under-strength Milwaukee Bucks line-up to extend their lead at the top of the Western Conference with a thumping 125-96 victory. The Bucks, missing Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard, Brook Lopez, Khris Middleton, and Bobby Portis, were buried by an avalanche of scoring from the Thunder, who led by as much as 44 points at one stage in the third quarter.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the rout with 34 points from just 22 minutes and 24 seconds on court, with Ousmane Dieng scoring 21 from the bench. Oklahoma City improved to 39-9 with the victory and lead the West from the second-placed Memphis Grizzlies, who moved to 34-16 with a 128-109 defeat of the San Antonio Spurs. Jaren Jackson Jr. led the Grizzlies scoring with 31 points while GG Jackson finished with 27 from the bench, including four three-pointers. Ja Morant added 25 from 9-of-18 shooting. French star Victor Wembanyama topped San Antonio’s scorers with 27 points.
In Denver, Nikola Jokic grabbed his 23rd triple-double of the season with 27 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 assists as the Nuggets blew past the New Orleans Pelicans 125-113. Michael Porter Jr. was the offensive standout for Denver though, with 36 points, including seven-of-12 from three-point range, while Jamal Murray contributed 20 points. Denver improved to 31-19 and are nine games behind conference leaders Oklahoma City.
In San Francisco, the Golden State Warriors held off a furious late rally from the Orlando Magic to bag a 104-99 victory. The Warriors opened up a 15-point lead to start the fourth quarter after outscoring Orlando 39-24 in the third, only for the Magic to hit back in the fourth to take a fleeting 92-90 lead with just over four minutes remaining. But the Warriors dominated the final minutes to regain the lead and close out the win, Andrew Wiggins (25 points) and Stephen Curry (24) combining for 49 points.
In Portland, Devin Booker became the Phoenix Suns’ all-time leading points scorer, surpassing Walter Davis’s total of 15,666 points for the franchise. However, Booker’s night finished on a downbeat note with a missed free throw at the end of overtime that would have tied the game, allowing the Trail Blazers to escape with a 121-119 victory.
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