January 28, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; New York Knicks’ guard Jalen Brunson (11), center Ariel Hulkpoti (55), and forward Mohamed Diawara (51) are playing in the second half against Toronto Raptors’ forward Brandon Ingram (3). Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Image The visiting New York Knicks will look to continue their dominance over the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night.
The Knicks have not only played in all three meetings between the teams this season, but have won their last 11 games against the Raptors. Toronto last beat New York at home on January 22, 2023.
The Knicks are riding the momentum of an impressive 114-89 home win over the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday.
Mikal Bridges had 25 points and five steals, Jalen Brunson added 24 points and seven assists and Karl-Anthony Towns had 12 points and 14 rebounds to help the Knicks earn their fourth win in their last five games.
The Knicks played the way they needed to end the Spurs’ 11-game winning streak and advance to the playoffs.
“San Antonio is one of the best teams in the league,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said. “We use every game since the All-Star break as a benchmark.”
“They’re a really good team and they’ve got to bring their A game,” Bridges said. “The thing is, we’re just trying to be the best version of ourselves. We’re trying to keep getting better and doing the right things no matter who’s in front of us. … We’ve done a great job defensively as a team and helping each other out. Sometimes we might miss coverage, but for the next guy to step up for each other, that’s big for us.”
The Knicks held the Spurs to 22 turnovers.
“This is just an example of what we can do defensively,” said Josh Hart, who had 10 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists for the Knicks. “We have to do that every night. Now we know it’s important to get better every day and be the best team we can be to make the playoffs. You can’t have a lull at this point. You can’t have ups and downs. It has to be a steady uphill. We have to keep building on this.”
The Raptors lost two straight before a 134-125 win over the Washington Wizards on Saturday. Emmanuel Quickley had 27 points and 11 assists, Brandon Ingram had 24 points and RJ Barrett had 21 points. Quickley and Barrett are former Knicks.
The Raptors’ inconsistency was on display again Saturday when they trailed 33-25 after the first quarter and 64-61 at halftime.
“We didn’t live up to our standards in the first half and that’s why we always compare ourselves,” Raptors coach Darko Rajkovic said. “Anyone can have a bad half or a bad quarter. It’s important for the team to react really well.”
“Darko attacked us at halftime,” Quickley said. “He didn’t show us any clips. He just seemed to light a fire under us and yell at us. He has different coaching styles and we haven’t seen anything like that in a long time, so he was great.”
Toronto played without Colin Murray-Boyles, who is dealing with a left thumb injury.
“Every time he hurts and gets hit, he seems to be in a lot of pain, and he has to manage that pain,” Rajakovic said. “This is something he’ll be dealing with for the rest of the year.”
Toronto center Jakob Poeltl, who missed seven weeks with a back problem, continued to improve on Saturday. He had 18 points, 10 rebounds, three steals and one block while shooting 7-for-7 from the field, his most complete effort since returning on Feb. 11.
–Field level media
