New York— A season-high 31 points from Josh Hart and 35 points and 11 assists from Jalen Brunson helped the New York Knicks overcome a 21-point hole and upset the Sacramento Kings 120-109 on Thursday to end a three-game losing streak.
Hours after Julius Randle said he would have right shoulder surgery and miss the season, the Knicks demonstrated they could still be dangerous without him. Donte DiVincenzo scored 21 points, and Hart shot 14 for 19 with nine rebounds and eight assists despite a sprained right wrist.
For us as a team, we started very slow and eventually picked up,” Brunson added. When one of your guys goes down and fights to get back and can't be where he wants to be, morale drops. Knicks' 45-31 record tied Orlando for fourth in Eastern Conference. If they end with the identical record, the Magic would enjoy home-court advantage in a first-round series due to their tiebreaker.
De'Aaron Fox had 29 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists for the Kings, who missed tying New Orleans and Phoenix for sixth in the West. They won two straight. Murray scored 18 points. In the Kings' first game of a four-game road trip, Domantas Sabonis scored 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists. Next week, they play the Pelicans and Suns at home.
In the morning, the Knicks announced that Randle would need surgery for the injury he suffered in a win over Miami on Jan. 27. In their second-most successful month in franchise history, the Knicks finished 14-2, looking like one of the league's best teams.
The Kings blitzed them for the first 15 minutes, taking a 46-25 advantage and making 19 of 28 shots (68%). It looked like a challenging night. To get back in the game, the Knicks ran out 16-2 and took control in the fourth quarter.
Fox's 3-pointer gave Sacramento a 95-92 lead with 9:55 left, but Brunson and Hart each scored three-pointers in a 13-0 run to give the Knicks a 105-95 edge midway through the fourth.
Guys played very, very unselfishly, just made the right play,” said Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau. There was a large hole to get out of, but we won.” Sacramento never threatened again after Sabonis scored and Brunson scored two consecutive to lead by 12.
Sacramento led 35-20 after one quarter after going 7-for-9 from 3-point shooting. After passing up open shots, Kings coach Mike Brown acknowledged his players made mistakes that gave the Knicks confidence. “And that’s a product of not consistently doing what we did to start the game,” Brown added. Move easily to the open person and let it fly if you're open.”
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