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In what very effectively might’ve been a first-round playoff preview, the New York Knicks defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday, 130-116, behind a career-high 48 factors from Jalen Brunson.
This marks the fifth 40-point sport of the season for Brunson, whose highest regular-season scoring output in 4 years with the Mavericks was 34. He has matched or topped that quantity 11 instances already in his first season with New York.
Brunson dissected the league’s finest protection from the leap. Yes, the Cavs had been with out Jarrett Allen, however New York was with out Julius Randle, whose absence compelled Brunson, who’s beginning to make an actual case for an All-NBA spot, into overdrive.
If this was a first-round preview, the Knicks (44-33) hanging 130 factors on the Cavs (48-29) with out Randle would bode effectively for his or her probabilities of pulling an upset, in case you would even name what can be a 4-5 matchup an upset.
Donovan Mitchell did all he might to maintain Cleveland in vary with 42 factors. It was Mitchell eleventh 40-point sport of the season, which is a Cavaliers single-season document. Brunson and Mitchell turned the primary opponents this century to every rating not less than 20 factors in a single quarter.
The Knicks want only one extra win to clinch a playoff spot. The solely means they might fall into the play-in can be if their lose their ultimate 4 video games and wind up in a three-way tie with the Nets and Heat.
