Jalen Brunson had 26 points and Cam Payne scored all 18 of his points in a span of 4:17, but the Knicks couldn't keep up with the Timberwolves.

Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns sat out Friday night's matchup against his former team, the Timberwolves, marking his second straight missed game due to a bone chip and sprained thumb.

The Knicks dropped their second straight home game on Friday night, as they lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves, 116-99, at Madison Square Garden.

The Minnesota Timberwolves will visit the New York Knicks in a cross-conference matchup on Friday's NBA schedule. New York is 27-15 overall and 13-7 at home, while Minnesota is 21-19 overall and 11-10 on the road.

Julius Randle appears to be on increasingly thin ice in Minnesota, not closing as many games, not endearing himself to the fans, and his albatross of a player option is threatening the Timberwolves’ ability to retain Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Naz Reid.

As a reminder, these teams exchanged superstars in the offseason with Julius Randle heading to Minneapolis and Karl-Anthony Towns moving to the Big Apple. The Timberwolves lost at home Wednesday night to the Golden State Warriors, 116-115. New York won in overtime Wednesday in Philadelphia, 125-119, over the 76ers.