Knicks' MSG Dominance Continues with Historic Performance vs. Jazz

One of the most encouraging aspects of the New York Knicks' start to the 2025-26 NBA regular season has been their performance at home.

Madison Square Garden used to be a place that opponents feared coming to. Defeating the Knicks on that court was a challenge, but for a long time, it became a place opponents loved to play because of the success they would have.

An inability to protect homecourt plagued New York for years, but that is no longer the case. Madison Square Garden has turned into a house of horrors for visitors this season, with the Knicks entering their game against the Utah Jazz with an 11-1 record there.

That record has improved to 12-1, with New York putting a historic beatdown on the Jazz in front of the home fans. What turned into a 146-112 victory for the Knicks started with the most lopsided performance of the last three decades.

Knicks got off to historically hot start against Jazz

Karl-Anthony Town — Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

New York went wire-to-wire in the victory, starting the game off with a record-setting 23-0 win. As shared by the official NBA account on X, that is the largest game-opening run a team has gone on during the play-by-play era without their opponent scoring a single point.

The 23-0 starting run by the Knicks is the largest game-opening run without an opponent point in the PxP era (1997-98) 👏 pic.twitter.com/aCgBp7tG8F
— NBA (@NBA) December 6, 2025

Everyone who was on the court for the Knicks was involved in the slaughtering. Mikal Bridges led the way with eight of the team’s 23 points, putting together a few highlight-worthy buckets in the open court.

This is the kind of game that coaches love, knowing they can get their regulars some rest. Jalen Brunson and Jordan Clarkson each played 31 minutes; they were the only New York players who were over the 28-minute mark.

Seven different players scored in double-figures, led by 33 from Brunson. After a few off nights shooting the ball, he has come back with a vengeance, torching the Charlotte Hornets night before his explosive showing vs. Utah.

Deuce McBride stays hot despite role change

The star point guard also tied Josh Hart with a team-high +37 plus/minus ratio. Not far behind was Miles McBride with +35.

It was encouraging to see McBride play so well after shifting back to a bench role. With OG Anunoby healthy enough to return after a nine-game absence, head coach Mike Brown opted to make him a reserve over Josh Hart.

It was the right move, with McBride keeping up his incredible shooting stretch from 3-point range. He knocked down seven of 10 attempts from long range, improving to 44% on the season as one of the best marksmen in the league.

Playing at Madison Square Garden has turned back into a legitimate advantage for the Knicks. They will look to exact some revenge on the Orlando Magic next time out this weekend.

New York is 0-2 against the Southeast Division foes thus far this season, with Orlando handing them their only loss thus far at MSG.

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