TORONTO (AP) — Jalen Brunson had 22 points, Josh Hart scored 15 of his 17 in the third quarter and the New York Knicks beat the Toronto Raptors 119-106 on Friday night to match a season high with their third straight win.
Julius Randle had 20 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists as New York improved to 10-0 against teams with losing records. The Raptors are 9-11.
Toronto-born RJ Barrett scored 15 points for the Knicks, while Donte DiVincenzo shot 7 for 9 from 3-point range and finished with 21.
Scottie Barnes scored 29 points and Pascal Siakam had 21 for the Raptors, but Toronto failed to extend a season-best three-game home winning streak.
Jakob Poeltl had 12 points and 12 rebounds for the Raptors. Dennis Schroder finished with 10 points and nine assists.
New York outscored Toronto 52-25 in bench points.
The Raptors shot 6 for 32 from 3-point range. Barnes finished 3 for 7 from long range but no other Toronto player made more than one 3-pointer.
The game was tied 57-all at halftime but Hart scored 15 consecutive points for the Knicks in the third as New York outscored Toronto 33-20 to take a 90-77 lead into the fourth.
Friday’s meeting was the first between the teams since the Knicks sued the Raptors in August, alleging that Toronto conspired to steal thousands of videos and other scouting secrets. The Raptors called the lawsuit “baseless” and “a public relations stunt by the Knicks” in an October court filing.
Wearing a Knicks vest and an orange knit cap, actor and director Spike Lee watched from a baseline seat.
UP NEXT
Knicks: Visit Milwaukee for an NBA In-Season Tournament quarterfinal game on Tuesday night.
Raptors: Host Miami on Wednesday night.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Ian Harrison, The Associated Press
