Knicks Beat Bucks 117-85 as Brunson Scores 23 at the Garden

The New York Knicks beat the Milwaukee Bucks 117-85 at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night. The win was their fourth in a row, and it kept the worst team in the East at the bottom of the standings.

Jalen Brunson led New York with 23 points in under 28 minutes. He made all eight of his free throws. Karl-Anthony Towns added 21 points and 16 rebounds, and OG Anunoby scored 19 points, including five three-pointers.

The second quarter settled it

New York led 26-21 after the first quarter. The second quarter was the game. The Knicks scored 32 points and held Milwaukee to 13, and they went to halftime ahead 58-34.

Milwaukee won the third quarter 38-27 and cut the lead, but the answer came fast. New York opened the fourth with a run of its own and won the quarter 32-13. The Knicks led by as many as 32 points.

Tyler Kolek added 12 points off the bench. Andre Drummond grabbed 14 rebounds. New York finished with 70 rebounds to Milwaukee's 34, and 26 assists to 20.

The Bucks keep sliding

Jaime Jaquez Jr. led Milwaukee with 16 points. Ryan Rollins scored 14, and rookie Kasparas Jakucionis added 11. Myles Turner, the Bucks' starting centre, scored three points on one of seven shooting.

Milwaukee came in at 1-9 and had lost six in a row. The loss made it seven straight. The Bucks lost 117-97 to Boston on Sunday, and their leading scorer Tyler Herro did not play on Tuesday because of a knee injury. Josh Hart did not play for the Knicks because of an ankle injury.

The Knicks started the season 0-3 and have won five of their past six. Brunson was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week after averaging 27.7 points and 6.3 assists in three wins last week.

What happens next

New York hosts the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday. The Knicks beat the Cavaliers 109-97 in Cleveland on Saturday, with Brunson scoring 31 points and Towns finishing with 29 points and 13 rebounds.

By the numbers

New York shot 44.9 percent from the field and made 17 of 44 three-pointers. Milwaukee shot 38 percent. The Knicks scored 38 points in the paint to 28 for the Bucks, and they committed 11 turnovers to 14 for Milwaukee.

The bench finished the game. Pacome Dadiet scored eight points in the final minutes, including a three-pointer with 2 minutes 21 seconds left. Miles McBride had eight points and three assists, and Mikal Bridges added three steals. Landry Shamet started and scored 10 points.

Milwaukee was called for 25 personal fouls to 13 for New York. The Knicks made 20 of 25 free throws. The Bucks made nine of 10 and still lost by 32.