Brunson returns to Dallas and Knicks edge Mavs in wild finish

DALLAS – Jalen Brunson made his return to action – and fittingly, it came against his former team. The New York Knicks finally got their first road win of the season, sneaking past the Dallas Mavericks 113-111 in a nail-biter that had everything: clutch shots, blown free throws, overturned calls, and plenty of drama until the very last second.

Brunson looked right at home on the Dallas floor, putting up a game-high 28 points and reminding everyone how much he thrives under pressure. But when the game was hanging in the balance, it was once again Landry Shamet who delivered. Fresh off his heroics against the Heat, Shamet proved clutch yet again, drilling back-to-back threes late in the fourth to give the Knicks a 112-109 edge with just 34 seconds left. It should have been the dagger.

Instead, things nearly spiraled into disaster. What followed was a free throw meltdown for the ages. Shamet missed a pair, Mitchell Robinson clanked two more, and even Brunson split his final trip to the line.

The Knicks were hanging by a thread, and Dallas had their chance. Brandon Williams missed a wide-open opportunity to tie the game with 8.3 seconds remaining, and then, with 0.7 on the clock, appeared to redeem himself – only for his potential game-tying basket to be overturned into an offensive foul. With no timeouts left to challenge, the Mavericks could only watch as the clock expired and the Knicks escaped.

Free throws were almost their undoing. The Knicks shot an ugly 19-of-35 from the stripe, barely 54%, while the Mavericks cashed in at 25-of-30. Ironically, Dallas missed three of their own in the final 3:30, at the exact time they needed them most.

The game itself was tight from start to finish. Neither team ever led by double digits. The Mavericks held a 44-37 advantage late in the second quarter, but the Knicks responded and grabbed their biggest lead when Josh Hart buried a corner three to make it 76-68 near the end of the third. From there, it was a back-and-forth fight to the final whistle.

Karl-Anthony Towns turned in a balanced stat line with 18 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 assists. Mikal Bridges added 16, while Hart filled every column again with 16 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists off the bench. Miles McBride chipped in 11 points in key minutes.

Dallas got big help from its second unit, with Naji Marshall and D’Angelo Russell each scoring 23. Max Christie added 15 and Klay Thompson 13. But the Knicks made their mark inside, winning the paint battle 44-30 and forcing 18 Dallas turnovers while committing only 9 themselves. The defense was everywhere – New York finished with 10 blocks, with almost everyone getting a hand in. Bridges and McBride each had two, and everyone else besides Towns and Clarkson swatted one.

It was a grind, it was messy, but it was a win – and one that might just get the Knicks’ road confidence going.

Next up: a trip to Orlando, where they’ll look to settle the score with the Magic, the only team to beat them at home this season. Tip-off is at 5:00 pm.