Brunson scores 34 in loss to Celtics

Jalen Brunson scored 34 points and dished out 9 assists but the New York Knicks fell 116-102 to the Boston Celtics last night at the Garden.

Despite a balanced first half, the Knicks were unable to stop the Celtics’ shooting spree in the third quarter. Kristaps Porzingis, Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown scored consecutive three pointers to give Boston their first double digit lead of the night, 76-66. Six minutes later, the lead was 20.

The Knicks tried to bounce back and cut it 99-90 early in the fourth quarter but then went scoreless for nearly 6 minutes, time in which the Celtics scored 10.

Josh Hart scored 16 points, Donte DiVincenzo had 12 while Miles McBride led the bench with 11 buckets.

The Celtics were led by Brown’s 30 points. All of their starters scored 12 or more. Porzingis had 22 shooting 7-11 from the field, Tatum finished with 19. The Celtics shot 56.8 from the field but in the closing minutes of the third quarter they were at 71%.

The Knicks struggled and barely shot 45% from the field, going 37-82. They relied heavily on Jalen Brunson who had scored half of the team’s total points in the first half. They also committed twice as many turnovers – 14 to just 7 by the Celtics, and were outscored in the paint 58-38.

Up-next: The Knicks (34-23) will host the Pistons (8-48) on Monday from 7:30