CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Jalen Brunson had 31 points and made two free throws with 8.6 seconds left, and the New York Knicks beat the undermanned Charlotte Hornets 99-98 to move to 3-0 in the NBA Cup game on Friday improve .

Karl-Anthony Towns added 19 points and 12 rebounds for the Knicks, who came into the game 23 points behind the Orlando Magic in Group A and in need of a blowout victory. The Magic are 2-0 in group play and will visit Brooklyn on Friday evening.

Brandon Miller had 20 points and Josh Green added 15 points for the Hornets, who played without three starters, including red-hot LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges and Mark Williams, as well as key backups Nick Richards, Tre Mann and Grant Williams.

The Knicks committed eight turnovers in the first quarter and managed to keep their lead at 15 points.

Takeaways

Knicks: New York played sloppy and uninspired basketball in the first half. The Knicks took the lead in the final minute, but it was short-lived as Josh Green hit a jumper to regain the lead, then stole a lazy inbounds pass from Mikal Bridges and turned around to score as time expired to hit a fading jumper.

Hornets: Ball, who averaged 40.3 points per game in his last four appearances, was sidelined due to soreness in his left calf. Head coach Charles Lee said Ball felt something toward the end of Wednesday night’s 98-94 loss to the Miami Heat. He gave no indication of when Ball might return to the lineup.

Key moment

Brunson’s mid-range jumper gave the Knicks the lead for good with 4:50 remaining.

Key statistics

Miller was 7 of 25 from the field and 2 of 11 from beyond the arc.

Next

The Knicks host the Pelicans on Sunday. The Hornets host the Hawks on Saturday evening.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba