Mikal Bridges, Knicks hammer woeful Pelicans 118-85

Mikal Bridges tied a career-high with seven 3-pointers and scored a season-high 31 points Sunday night for the New York Knicks, who led nearly wire-to-wire in a 118-85 win over the visiting New Orleans Pelicans.

Bridges sank seven 3-pointers in a game twice previously, most recently for the Brooklyn Nets against the Chicago Bulls on March 29.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 14 points and 19 rebounds for the Knicks, who took control with a 23-1 first-quarter run. New York led by at least 20 points for the final 37-plus minutes.

Jalen Brunson scored 16 points, Miles McBride had 13 points off the bench and starter Josh Hart added 12 points as New York posted its most lopsided victory since a 145-101 win over the Toronto Raptors on March 27.

CJ McCollum scored 13 points for the Pelicans, who have lost eight in a row and 14 of their last 15. Trey Murphy III and Yves Missi had 11 points apiece while Dejounte Murray added 10 points as New Orleans lost by at least 30 points for the second time this season.

Murphy gave the Pelicans their lone lead at 3-2 by draining a 3-pointer 85 seconds into the game. The Knicks scored the next 12 points to begin their surge, during which New Orleans missed 14 straight shots over a span of nearly nine minutes. Bridges ended the run with 11 unanswered points.

The Knicks led 33-10 after one and maintained a lead of at least 21 points in the second quarter before entering halftime ahead 57-28. The Pelicans got within 27 points twice in the third quarter, and Brunson sank a 3-pointer with 5:10 left to put New York ahead by 30 points for good at 81-51.

Bridges opened the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer to give the Knicks their first 40-point lead at 96-56. New York emptied the bench minutes later and maintained a lead between 33 and 41 points the rest of the way.

--Field Level Media