OG Anunoby scored a career-high 40 points, Karl-Anthony Towns added 30 points and 15 rebounds, and the New York Knicks dominated the Denver Nuggets with a 145-118 win on Monday night.
Jalen Brunson had 23 points and set a career-high with 17 assists, while Mikal Bridges contributed 14 points and six assists. The Knicks also set a season-high in points and matched a franchise record with 45 assists. Miles McBride scored 13 points, Josh Hart had 12, and Cameron Payne finished with 11.
For the Nuggets, Russell Westbrook scored 24 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter. Nikola Jokic had 22 points, Jamal Murray scored 20 points, Michael Porter Jr. added 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Christian Braun scored 14 points. The Nuggets have now lost two straight games at home.
The Knicks were up by two late in the first quarter but ended the period on a 14-4 run, leading 36-24. They continued to dominate in the second quarter.
After Porter’s jumper made it 39-29, Payne made a three-point play and a 3-pointer, followed by a dunk from Towns. Towns then hit a 26-footer to extend New York’s lead to 50-29.
Anunoby’s floater stretched the lead to 23, but Denver responded with a 14-5 run to cut the deficit to 64-50 with 2:52 left in the half. The Knicks finished strong, taking a 76-53 lead into halftime after Brunson’s three-point play.
This was the second consecutive home game the Nuggets allowed over 70 points in the first half. They gave up 73 points in a 123-120 loss to Dallas on Friday.
New York extended its lead to 92-67 in the third quarter. After Denver closed the gap to 20, Anunoby completed a three-point play and hit a 3-pointer to push the lead back to 101-77.
Porter gave Denver some hope with a three-point play, cutting the deficit to 19, but Anunoby quickly scored eight points in less than two minutes, and Towns added a layup to help the Knicks lead 113-87 after three quarters.
New York’s lead grew to as much as 30 in the fourth, and they cruised to their fifth win in the last six games.
