Knicks fall to Lakers as OG Anunoby leaves with right foot sprain

There are games. And then there are games.

Ones that are hot tickets. Ones that are appointment viewing. Ones in which the building is standing-room-only.

What transpired Saturday night at the Garden was one of those games — or at least it was supposed to be.

The Knicks’ 128-112 loss to the Lakers — a nationally televised prime-time showcase — was overshadowed by the loss of OG Anunoby to what the team called a “right foot sprain” 1:12 into the third quarter.

With the Knicks trailing 62-57, Anunoby spotted up for a three-point attempt in front of the Lakers’ bench and dropped to the court without having been touched.

He stayed on the court and grabbed at his lower calf for a moment before being helped to his feet by LeBron James and Karl-Anthony Towns. He walked off the court and did not return as the sellout crowd of 19,812 watched in silence.

Tom Thibodeau said Anunoby had X-rays that were negative but added that he had not spoken to the Knicks’ medical team about the injury.

“I know as much as you guys know,” Jalen Brunson said when asked about Anunoby, who scored 13 points and shot 5-for-7 in 17 minutes before leaving. “He’s huge for our team, so we’re going to pray [for him].”

Anunoby’s injury cast a pall on what had been a highly anticipated matchup. The Knicks had won five in a row and James was visiting for the 33rd (and possibly last) time in his career. He entered the game having averaged 28.0 points, 7.4 assists and 6.9 rebounds in his previous 32 games at the Garden.

James, 40, had another memorable game, finishing with 33 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds, highlighted by a two-handed baseline dunk on Mikal Bridges in the fourth quarter that extended the Lakers’ lead to 111-102.

“Very, very much so,” James said when asked if the Garden is special to him. “The fans have always treated me with respect and I always tried to give it back to them. I understand the history of this building and so many people have come through this building. So many athletes, musicians, artists, whatever the case might be. I’ve been a part of Madison Square Garden in my 20-plus years. Just try to give back to them.”

He did, but he was not a one-man show. Austin Reaves had 27 points, Rui Hachimura scored 21 and Dorian Finney-Smith and Max Christie had 15 each for the Lakers (28-19), who shot 58% from the field.

“We were stagnant offensively,” said Josh Hart, who recorded his seventh triple-double of the season and the 13th of his Knicks career with 26 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists. His running half-court three-pointer at the end of the third quarter brought the Knicks (32-17) within 91-89, but the Lakers outscored them 37-23 in the fourth.

“On this streak, our defense created a lot of offense. We get stops. Get turnovers to get out in transition,” Hart said. “I don’t think we did that today.”

Brunson scored 17 points, shooting 7-for-18, and Towns was held to 11 points and 3-for-9 shooting. Bridges scored 16 points and reserves Deuce McBride and Precious Achiuwa contributed 16 and 15, respectively.

“I just didn’t shoot well tonight,” Towns said. “Tough, but keep your head up.”

Notes & quotes: Thibodeau said Mitchell Robinson is “pretty close” to receiving “clearance for regular contact.” Robinson has not played this season after undergoing ankle surgery. “Everything has gone very smoothly in terms of the rehab,” Thibodeau said. “The controlled contact, you know what’s coming, so you can brace yourself for it. Once you get out of that, where you’re just playing and reacting, that’ll be the next step.”