Jalen Brunson scored 29 points Isn’t it great??

Monday’s 114-109 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers was the result of the visiting New York Knicks’ improved defense, which also saw Jalen Brunson score 29 points and Julius Randle add 27 points and 14 rebounds.

The Knicks bounced back from a 144-122 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday to improve to 2-2 on a five-game road swing with 20 points from Immanuel Quickley and 17 rebounds from Isaiah Hartenstein.

LeBron James recorded a triple-double with 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists, while Anthony Davis finished with 32 points and 14 rebounds. The Lakers dropped to 1-3 after defeating the Indiana Pacers on December 9 to win the NBA in-season tournament.

For the first time since the tournament championship game, Jarred Vanderbilt, Davis, James, and Austin Reaves were all available for the Lakers, who were led by Austin Reaves with 20 points. Prior to Monday’s match, Los Angeles hoisted a smaller version of the tournament championship banner.

After a 3-pointer by Quentin Grimes, the Knicks went on a 15-2 run to take a 90-80 lead with 30.1 seconds left in the third quarter.

With 7:58 left in the game, a trey by Brunson put the Knicks ahead 97-90, and another basket by Brunson with 5:47 left gave New York a 101-91 lead.

With 7:58 left in the game, a trey by Brunson put the Knicks ahead 97-90, and another basket by Brunson with 5:47 left gave New York a 101-91 lead.

After a James dunk, the Lakers were within 103-99 with 3:38 left. However, with 2:33 left, the Knicks led 108-101 thanks to a 3-pointer from Randle and a floater from Brunson. With 1:04 left, a James basket inside trimmed New York’s lead to 108-103. After that, neither team scored again.

With 34.1 seconds left, Randle made a fastbreak layup to put the Knicks ahead 110-103. In the last 25 seconds, the team made four free throws to secure the victory.

Late in the third quarter, Vanderbilt—who had just recovered from back spasms—seemed to have hurt his left foot. In 14 minutes, he had two rebounds and one assist for the Lakers.

In the last 1:21 of the first quarter, the Knicks scored nine points, giving them a 35-27 advantage. The Lakers led 58-57 at the half after scoring eight points in the last 1:07 of the second quarter. Randle led the Knicks with 16 points before the half.