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 of times and finally dropping through.
He was so hot from the field that a shooter’s roll almost seemed unfair. He got it anyway.
Brunson, a sixth-year guard, 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 on Friday night.
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 ever to score 50 points while making nine 3s. He also is the first player to go 8-for-8 on 3-pointers in a half in NBA history, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
Brunson is just the fourth player in Knicks history to record a 50-point game on 70% shooting, joining franchise legends Patrick Ewing, Bernard King and Willis Reed.
Phoenix — which lost star guard Bradley Beal to an ankle injury in the first quarter — has lost six of its past eight. New York has won two of its past 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 Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: www.espn.com