PHOENIX – Jalen Brunson’s eighth 3-point attempt of the night initially looked a little off the mark, hitting the side of the rim before bouncing around a couple times and finally dropping through.
The sixth-year guard was so hot from the field that a shooter’s roll almost seemed unfair. He got it anyway.
Brunson scored a career-high 50 points while hitting all nine of his 3-point attempts, Julius Randle added 23 and the New York Knicks beat the Phoenix Suns 139-122.
It was a brilliant shooting display from Brunson, who made 17 of 23 shots, including 12 of 12 in the second half. His final 3 got him to 50 points for the night. He also had five steals.
“I had no idea,” Brunson said about his perfection from long range. “I was just playing free.”
Brunson is the first Knicks player in franchise history to score 50 points while making nine 3s.
Phoenix – which lost star guard Bradley Beal to an ankle injury in the first quarter – has dropped six of its last eight. New York has won two of three.
“They made shots and just got hot and aggressive,” Suns star Kevin Durant said. “They killed us in the pick and roll and that was the game.”
The Suns led by 10 midway through the third quarter but settled for a 99-97 lead heading to the fourth. Brunson kept the Knicks close with 19 points in the quarter on 7-for-7 shooting, including five 3-pointers.
“The way he shot the ball was special,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said.
The Knicks used a 13-4 run early in the fourth to push ahead and never lost the lead, pulling away in the final minutes.
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