The Knicks suffered a brutal blow on Wednesday after Jalen Brunson left the game with a left ankle sprain. Brunson sustained the injury in the first half as he fell on his own while trying a crossover attempt on Kings center Maxime Raynaud. Brunson turned his right ankle and limped to the locker room.
He was initially listed as questionable to return, but was ruled out after halftime. Tyler Kolek replaced Jalen Brunson at point guard.
The Knicks could suffer a double blow as they are playing against the Warriors on Thursday, on the second night of a back-to-back. Meanwhile, they are also losing to the Kings, trailing 56-42 at the half.
Jalen Brunson’s night ended with four points on 2 of 3 shooting. He played 4:59 minutes. The Knicks trailed the Kings 18-8 when he left, and that deficit has only increased as New York trailed by 25 points at one stage.
Knicks lose big as Jalen Brunson goes down with an ankle injury setback
Knicks coach Mike Brown’s return to Sacramento didn’t end in a fairytale as New York didn’t just lose Jalen Brunson to an injury but also suffered its sixth loss in eight games. The Knicks lost by a margin of 112-101. They made a late push in the fourth, outscoring Sacramento 25-16, but that wasn’t enough.
None of New York’s players managed to score at least 20 points. Mikal Bridges had a team-high 19 points but he missed 14 of his 20 field goal attempts. Karl-Anthony Towns also struggled, managing only 13 points on 5 of 14 shots. New York shot a measly 39.0% from the field as a team.
On the other hand, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Precious Achiuwa scored 20 or more each, while Russell Westbrook had 19 points and 11 assists as Sacramento stormed to another impressive win. The Kings have beaten the Rockets, Lakers and Knicks in succession.
College Sports Network has you covered with the latest news, analysis, insights, and trending stories in college football, men’s college basketball, women’s college basketball, and college baseball!
