Knicks: Jalen Brunson's monster 48 points vs. Cavs has fans hyped

New York Knicks fans rejoiced on Friday as Jalen Brunson showed up and exploded big time against the Cavs.

New York Knicks fans rejoiced on Friday as Jalen Brunson showed up and exploded big time against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Brunson was absolutely phenomenal for the Knicks, getting off to a hot start and sustaining that level en route to New York's 130-116 win. JB had 33 points in the first half alone and finished with 48 in the game, with Cleveland unable to find a way to stop him.

Donovan Mitchell tried his best to match Brunson, but even his 42 points were not enough for Cleveland.

Naturally, Knicks fans heaped a ton of praise on Brunson for his performance in the absence of Julius Randle. The last time the New York faithful saw one of their own score more than 33 points in the first half was back in 2014 when Carmelo Anthony dropped 37 against the Charlotte Hornets (then Bobcats).

While Brunson is not the same scorer as Anthony, he has certainly shown he can carry and lead the team to victory.

“With no Julius Randle and a statement win, Jalen Brunson just gave Knick fans 50 reasons to not trip over not getting Donovan Mitchell! Carry on…” former NBA big man Kendrick Perkins wrote in praise of the veteran guard.

Newsday Sports reporter Jamie Stuart added, “I feel like Jalen Brunson is better than any point guard Patrick Ewing ever played with (except Mark Jackson, who only played a few early years w[ith] Ewing).”

“Jalen Brunson a hooper. His pace and shot making is elite stuff. Such a crafty player. Cooked the Cavs for 48 on all skill tonight,” another fan said.

Here are more reactions to Brunson's big night.