In a nail-biting clash, the New York Knicks (15-11) secured a 114-109 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers (15-12), with Jalen Brunson’s stellar performance leading the way.
Brunson’s 29 points, including 11 crucial ones in the fourth quarter, played a pivotal role in the Knicks overcoming LeBron James’ 109th career triple-double.
Julius Randle, facing his former team, contributed 27 points and 14 rebounds, while Immanuel Quickley added 20 points, helping the Knicks fend off a late rally by James and the Lakers.
Despite James’ impressive 25 points, 11 assists, and 11 rebounds, and Anthony Davis’ 32 points and 14 rebounds, the Lakers couldn’t capitalize on opportunities to close the gap in the final minutes.
The Lakers, welcoming back Davis, D’Angelo Russell, and Cam Reddish from injury, couldn’t secure the win despite Austin Reaves’ 20-point contribution.
After the game, Lakers head coach Darvin Ham shared his thoughts on the challenging night, stating:
“They got some guys that got going, be it Brunson or Quickley, got some timely offensive rebounds, putbacks, gave themselves some extra opportunities. It’s very rare that we get outscored in the paint. They were very deliberate in trying to play downhill, get to the paint. But just constantly coming at you.
“And then for us, we had some really outstanding looks that just didn’t go down, both at the rim and from three. I felt like they caught us standing a little bit. We talk about having the next play mentality—whatever happens, good, bad, indifferent, we got to move to the next play.
“The details of not committing too many self-inflicted wounds, unforced turnovers, or, again, standing and watching, giving up offensive rebounds instead of boxing out. Things like that. You’re gonna have those nights, especially against good teams.
“But we just got to tighten up as much as we possibly can all the while getting rest. We got guys coming back trying to get healthy, we got guys out, illnesses. We got to push through this time. It’s normally like that in December/January.
“We’ll be fine, we’ll be fine. We’ll watch it on film as we prepare for this three-game trip.”
