NBA: Knicks open game with record 23-0 run, manhandle Jazz

Brunson Scores 33 as Knicks Roll Past Jazz with Historic Start. Jalen Brunson poured in 33 points in just three quarters Friday night as the New York Knicks dominated the Utah Jazz, riding their biggest game-opening run on record to a 146-112 victory at Madison Square Garden.

The Knicks stormed out to a 23-0 lead, marking their longest game-opening run since the NBA began tracking play-by-play data in 1996-97. New York maintained control throughout, leading by at least 19 points for the remainder of the game to secure their second straight wire-to-wire win. With the victory, the Knicks improved to 12-1 at home, their best start at MSG since the 1992-93 team went 13-1.

Miles McBride added 22 points off the bench, shooting 7-of-10 from beyond the arc, while Karl-Anthony Towns contributed 18 points and nine rebounds before leaving the game with 5:55 remaining in the third quarter, with New York ahead 87-65. Jordan Clarkson scored 14 points, and starters OG Anunoby (11) and Mikal Bridges (10) also reached double figures, with Bridges scoring eight during the record-breaking opening run.

For Utah, Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George each had 18 points before sitting out the fourth quarter. Ace Bailey, the only Jazz starter on the floor in the final period, added 13 points, while reserves Isaiah Collier (13), Walter Clayton Jr. (11), and Kyle Filipowski (10) also reached double figures. The loss ended Utah’s two-game winning streak and was the team’s second-largest defeat of the season.

George’s old-fashioned three-point play ended the Knicks’ historic first-quarter run with 5:27 left, but New York had already built a commanding 41-13 lead. The Jazz closed the half to 68-47, but New York quickly pulled away in the third. Clarkson’s 3-pointer gave the Knicks a 30-point lead at 97-67, and Mitchell Robinson’s tip-in pushed their largest lead to 115-74 late in the third. Utah could not get closer than 29 points in the fourth quarter.

The Knicks’ 146-point performance marked their second-most lopsided win of the season, following a 134-98 rout of the Brooklyn Nets on Nov. 9. -Field Level Media/Reuters Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images