The New York Knicks just keep winning. They practically did so twice Wednesday night against the Denver Nuggets.
In double overtime, without Karl-Anthony Towns (who fouled out in the initial extra frame), as well as Josh Hart and Miles McBride (who both didn’t suit up because of injury), Jalen Brunson polished off a 42-point outing by sparking an 8-0 run that gave the Knicks enough separation to finally hold on for a 134-127 victory over the Nuggets.
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The game went to double overtime only because of a loose-ball foul on Mikal Bridges with 0.3 seconds remaining in the first overtime. It appeared as if the Knicks already had their eighth straight win in the bag once Jamal Murray missed a 3-pointer. Madison Square Garden erupted as such.
After review, the officials ruled that Bridges shoved a rebound-hunting Christian Braun just before the buzzer, resulting in a trip to the charity stripe for the fourth-year guard, who was in his second game back from a lingering ankle injury. Braun made both free throws to extend the game.
Brunson had a chance to win the game in the waning moments of regulation, but his step-back jumper was off the mark. So was Nikola Jokić’s last-second heave, a 27-foot 3-pointer from the edge of the Knicks’ logo that nearly banked in.
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Technically still on a minutes restriction following his return from a bone bruise in his hyperextended left knee, Jokić played nearly two times as long as he was expected to, finishing with a triple-double — 30 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists — in a whopping 45 minutes.
That said, fatigue appeared to take its toll on Jokić, who couldn’t buy a basket from deep late, clocking out 1 of 13 from 3-point land. He also missed two of his three free throws in double overtime.
Murray scored 39 points. He made some clutch shots down the stretch, but his long-range struggles also contributed to the Nuggets shooting a mere 13 of 50, or 26%, from 3.
Denver has lost three games in a row, and it also lost Peyton Watson to a hamstring injury in the fourth quarter. Watson pulled up and held the back of his right leg after cutting toward the basket.
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Watson has come through for the Nuggets this season while they’ve juggled a slew of injuries, averaging 22.2 points over his previous 18 games.
Spencer Jones also left the game early and was evaluated for a concussion, according to head coach David Adelman, who said that Watson will get an MRI to determine the severity of his hamstring issue, per Nuggets reporter Katy Winge.
Brunson starred for the Knicks, knocking down five 3-pointers.
Landry Shamet stayed hot off the bench with four makes from beyond the arc and 16 points. Before fouling out, Towns totaled 24 points and 12 rebounds.
Bridges scored only five points, except one of his two field goals was a redemptive triple from the right wing that helped New York bury Denver in double overtime.
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The Knicks were spinning last month. Now they have the NBA’s longest active win streak.
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