Jalen Brunson Joins Exclusive Company With 5th Straight 39-Plus Point Playoff Game

Jalen Brunson has been everything for the New York Knicks this season. A likely All-NBA performer, Brunson has led the Knicks to one of its most memorable seasons in nearly 30 years. He has taken his game to another level in the playoffs and Monday night was no different.

Brunson scored 43 points, including 21 in the fourth quarter, to lead the Knicks to a 121-117 victory over the Indiana Pacers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. It was the fourth straight game Brunson scored 40 points, making him the fourth player in history to accomplish that feat.

But he scored 39 points in the game before the streak started, becoming only the second player to score at least 39 points in five straight games. He is one game away from tying Jerry West’s mark of six straight games in 1965. West scored at least 40 points in those six games in that postseason.

Brunson is First Player Since Michael Jordan to Score 40 points in Four Straight

He’s on another level for Knicks this year

Brunson is the first player to have 40 points and 5 assists in four straight playoff games. He has scored 210 points in the past five games. Only Michael Jordan, in 1993, had ever done that in the postseason. Brunson’s coach, Tom Thibodeau, commented on his star player’s performance after the game, saying that he is a huge part of why the team continues to win.

Bernard King is the fourth player to have scored four straight 40-point games. He had seven 40-point playoff games in his Knicks career. Brunson has five so far in two seasons playing in New York. What has been special is when Brunson is doing the bulk of his damage.

What Brunson Did on Monday Night

Knicks star took over late

Brunson had 21 in the fourth quarter and had the ball in his hands on almost every possession. As the fourth quarter went on, Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, Brunson’s former coach in Dallas, was having the defense double-team him to try and prevent him from getting the ball. Knicks players would still find ways to get the ball in the hands of Brunson, who continued to deliver tough stepback jump shots or running layups.

Brunson only hit one 3-pointer in the game, making up for it by going 14 for 14 from the free throw line and 13 for 22 from inside the arc. After the game, Brunson said there isn’t one thing that he and the team are doing that is special. They are just finding ways to win.

Brunson and his Villanova teammates, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo, combined for 92 of the Knicks’ 121 points. The Knicks are winning because of their starters and point guard, who has become a star. We’ll have to wait until Wednesday to see if he can continue this torrid scoring pace.

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