Atlanta Thrashes Knicks in 2nd Straight Loss

Nearly 48 hours after after Times Square dropped its orb, a plethora of dropped balls did the New York Knicks in at Madison Square Garden.

A Jalen Johnson triple-double and too many turnovers spelled the Knicks doom in a 111-99 defeat to the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night in Manhattan.

Combined with Wednesday’s loss in San Antonio, the Knicks (23-11) have dropped consecutive games for the first time since late October. Friday also marked the Knicks’ first game with fewer than 100 points, ending a franchise-best 33-game streak to start the season.

Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 24 points in defeat, forced to carry another sizable offensive load with an ill Karl-Anthony Towns held out alongside Josh Hart and Mitchell Robinson. Brunson was not immune to metropolitan shooting woes that saw them sink only nine three-pointers on 44 attempts. The captain was 1-of-10 while Mikal Brides and Miles McBride had three each, albeit on a combined 21 tries.

Recurring Knicks nemesis Trae Young sat but Johnson’s eight triple-double of the season (18 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists) allowed Atlanta to maintain a healthy lead from the first period-onward. Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Onyeka Okongwu each had 23 points to lead the Hawks (17-19), who conversely won consecutive games for the first time since late November.

With their season series split for the time being, New York and Atlanta meet one more time this year on April 6. In the meantime, the Knicks won’t have long to muse about this one, as they’ll immediately return to action on Saturday against the Philadelphia 76ers (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG/NBA TV).