Julius Randle, Knicks blow lead as cold shooting dooms them late in loss to Magic

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 doing his best to pick up the slack — and OG Anunoby filling in with his role-playing duties — 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, which included two big missed free throws from Julius Randle with 2:37 remaining and a one-point deficit.

It broke the Knicks’ backs and they didn’t have Brunson to fix it.

“Yeah, obviously, it is more difficult when you’re missing 25 [points] a game [from Brunson], someone who can control the pace of the game,” said Josh Hart, who shot just 2 of 7. “So obviously that’s difficult to replace. When he’s out, we’ve got to figure out plays that get guys in positions to be successful.”

Randle was succinct in his explanation of the problematic offense in the fourth quarter.