Jalen Brunson had 38 points and nine assists and Julius Randle posted the Knicks’ first triple-double of this season in New York’s 126-100 win over the visiting Toronto Raptors in the first game between the teams since their blockbuster trade on Dec. 30.
Randle had 18 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists, the first New York player to register a triple-double since Immanuel Quickley had 34 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists against Toronto on April 10, 2022. Coincidentally, Quickley was sent to the Raptors along with RJ Barrett in exchange for OG Anunoby, Precious Achiuwa and Malachi Flynn last month.
Anunoby had 14 points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots as the Knicks improved to 9-2 since he moved into the lineup on Jan. 1. Achiuwa (18 points, 11 rebounds) posted his first double-double since Dec. 8, while Donte DiVincenzo added 17 points and Josh Hart 10.
Quickley had 12 points and 11 assists for his first double-double for his new team, while Barrett had a team-high 20 points and eight rebounds for the Raptors, who have lost six of seven. Gary Trent Jr. scored 16 points, and Gradey Dick added 11 off the bench.
The Knicks led 59-57 at the half, but Jontay Porter opened the third with a layup for the Raptors. New York then scored seven straight points to spark a 21-6 run. Brunson had 12 points in the sequence, including an individual 7-0.
The Knicks opened a 20-point lead at 92-72 on Miles McBride’s 3-pointer with 1:39 remaining in the third before the Raptors scored the next eight points bridging the periods. But Toronto missed its next five shots from the field and New York pulled away and took a pair of 28-point leads in the waning minutes.
–Field Level Media
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