Brunson’s 43, DiVo’s 3’s, & Knicks D Beat Bucks! NY 122 Milwaukee 109

April 8, 2024 LouV 2023-24 0
Donte DiVincenzo hits another 3, going 8-11 from 3 on the night. Photo courtesy NY Knicks.

Jalen Brunson put on another Stephen Curry-like show, scoring in every way possible for 43 points; Donte DiVincenzo shot 8-11 from 3, many in the 4th quarter; and the Knick DEFENSE put up a wall in the 2nd half — as NY beat the Bucks in Milwaukee on a Sunday night, going away.

NY was down 16 after a quarter, and down 11 at the half, but took the lead in the 3rd off a 39-24 quarter, and blew Milwaukee away in the 4th.

OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, Mitchell Robinson, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Miles McBride created defensive havoc — Anunoby with his quick hands creating so many deflections; Robinson grabbing offensive rebounds and blocking shots inside on Giannis Antetokounmpo; Hartenstein diving for loose balls; and Hart everywhere.

“I thought we had a good start to the game; we didn’t close the 1st or 2nd quarter well,” said coach Tom Thibodeau afterwards. “But the 2nd half we played great on both sides of the ball. Guys were tied together; they created good offense for each other. The rebounding was good. Mitch was monster. Isaiah played great out of the pocket. We got great center play today.”

NY improves to 46-32 and is in a tie with Orlando for 3rd place, ahead of Cleveland who lost. Milwaukee falls to 47-31, a game ahead of the Knicks.

1. Milwaukee Jumped Out to 16-Point Lead

Milwaukee, which had lost 3 in a row coming in, came out with aggression looking to end their losing streak.

Giannis was getting to the bucket for drives, Damian Lillard hit a 3 and was getting to the line — making 6 of 7 free throws in the 1st quarter, and Khris Middleton was playing off Greek Freak drives for buckets. Brook Lopez chipped in a 3 and Milwaukee went up by 16 points entering the 2nd quarter.

2. Bucks Lose Middleton in 2nd Quarter

The Knicks started matching the Bucks energy in the 2nd quarter.

NY pulled to within 8 on an Isaiah Hartenstein bucket with 6 minutes left in the quarter, as Middleton fell to the floor when Donte DiVincenzo inadvertently hit him in the face, Hartenstein landing on Middleton’s back as Middleton lied on the floor on his stomach.

Middleton went to the locker room with blood coming from his mouth. It was later revealed he had a tooth knocked out and was rushed to a dentist.

Without Middleton, Bobby Portis stepped up his game, and Brook Lopez added a drive and free throws — Milwaukee actually upped their lead to 11 at the half.

3. Knicks Take Lead with 39-24 3rd Quarter

But the Knicks came out and re-applied pressure in the 3rd, taking over the game.

Jalen Brunson was a man on Fire — scoring in every way possible; continuously penetrating and scoring or feeding Knicks like Isaiah Hartenstein inside for scores.

“Jalen Brunson always in attack mode and he dictates where and what he wants to get not the other way around,” noted NBA Analyst Ross Kreines. “Whether that’s getting in the lane and finishing, creating contact, creating for others, backing you down or give him space and he hits his jumper. He puts you at his mercy.”

OG Anunoby started effecting the game with his quick hands, deflecting shots to produce steals, causing havoc for Antetokounmpo.

Josh Hart was everywhere. Hartenstein was everywhere — diving on the floor for balls.

Mitchell Robinson entered late in the quarter and was dynamite inside — providing the biggest and most active body on the court even with Brook Lopez out there. Robinson was grabbing offensive rebounds and late in the quarter, blocked Pat Connaughton‘s layup.

The one fly in the Knicks ointment was Bobby Portis, who kept knocking down 3’s or midrange jumpers. Portis would finish with 24 pts on 10-15 shooting (4-6 from 3). It felt like he was 8-11 from 3.

4. Knicks Blow Milwaukee Away in 4th

With Brunson getting a rest at start of the 4th, Miles McBride and Bojan Bogdanovic took over the scoring.

MicBride hit a huge 3 from the left corner as the clock was expiring to give NY a 92-87 lead and then hit a tough drive on the next possession to put NY up by 7.

Then Bogan Bogdanovic hit a 3 with a quick release like a gun fighter in a Spaghetti Western.

Bogey hit a deuce next time down and NY was up 12, at 99-87.

It was Bogey’s best game as a Knick — he scored with confidence, assured ball handling, and quick release. He finished with 15 points on 6-9 shooting (1-1 from 3).

Anunoby’s quick hands resulted in so many deflections in the 3rd, against Giannis.

Giannis finally got by Anunoby on one drive but was greeted by Mitchell Robinson, who swatted away his shot to Kingdom Come.

Brunson could not be stopped — scoring relentlessly. And then Donte DiVincenzo started hitting 3’s.

  • DiVincenzo hit a 3 with 8 minutes left to put NY up 102-89.
  • DiVincenzo hit a 3 with 3 minutes left to put NY up 114-103.
  • DiVincenzo hit a 3 with 2:36 left to put NY up 117-103 (back-to-back 3’s).
  • DiVincenzo hit a 3 with 28 seconds left to put NY up 122-109.

And ballgame.

Bobby Portis hit two 3’s in the quarter — if not Milwaukee would have really been rolled over.

Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers pulled his starters with a minute left to raise the white flag, NY up 10.

The Boxscore

https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore/_/gameId/401585767

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