In the end, the Knicks couldn’t overcome the absence of Jalen Brunson and a shooting night from Julius Randle as cold as the weather in Buffalo.
Despite Miles McBride again trying to pick up the slack — and OG Anunoby dropping 17 points — the lack of offensive creation doomed the Knicks down the stretch of a 98-94 defeat to the Magic on MLK Day.
The Knicks (23-17) led for most of the game but managed just one point over a six-minute stretch of the fourth quarter, including zero points in four of those minutes.
It broke the Knicks’ back.
Randle shot a miserable 5-for-18 with 15 points. Magic power forward Paolo Banchero countered with 20 points on 9 of 19 shooting.
McBride got the start again and impressed with a team-high 20 points in 36 minutes.
Brunson missed his second straight game with a bruised calf, an injury he sustained in Thursday’s defeat in Dallas.
The Knicks were victorious in their first contest without Brunson — a win Saturday over the severely undermanned Grizzlies — but the Magic (22-18) represent a much tougher opponent.
Still, the Knicks led from late in the second quarter until 3:43 remaining in the fourth — right in the middle of New York’s cold streak.
The Magic was also missing a top player, Franz Wagner, who sat his sixth straight with an ankle injury.
Wagner dropped 32 points in the Magic’s only previous game against the Knicks this season, a nine-point Orlando victory in late December.
Brunson warmed up Monday but was ruled out before tip-off.
He’s considered day-to-day and could return Wednesday at home against the Rockets.
Without Brunson on the court, the Magic crowded Randle (15 points) whenever he dribbled close to the paint, preventing him from getting to the rim.
He forced some shots, and was rendered ineffective with just four points in the first half on 1 of 8 shooting — including 0-for-3 from beyond the arc.
The Knicks, who’ve played more games than any other NBA team on MLK day, dropped to 23-15 on the holiday.
