Down by seven with just over a minute left, Karl-Anthony Towns had a wide-open three from the top of the key, a chance to cut the Knicks deficit to four and make it interesting. But he airballed. It was fitting, and the MSG crowd rained boos down on the court.

This is more than a rut. The Knicks — without Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart on Saturday — are beginning to spiral, as they fell 106-99 to the Suns at Madison Square Garden.

“You don’t ever want to have boos, but at the end of the day, the fans here are passionate and you respect and embrace their passion,” coach Mike Brown said. “But it hurts. It hurts the staff, it hurts the players.”

In a sign of just how poorly things are going for them at the moment, they went on a 16-0 run to go up by 10 points in the third quarter, but still managed to end the quarter down three. That’s because, after one of their best stretches in weeks, they let the Suns close the third quarter on a 13-0 run and undo all the good that they had done.

Karl-Anthony Towns argues with referee Suyash Mehta during the second half of the Knicks’ 106-99 loss to the Suns on Jan. 17, 2026 at Madison Square Garden. Robert Sabo for New York Post

That’s the way it’s been recently for the Knicks. Too many bad moments outweighing anything positive.

Yes, they were short-handed without Brunson and Hart, both sidelined with right ankle injuries. But the Knicks had over $134 million in firepower on the court in Towns, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges. It’s hard to commit 17 turnovers and shoot as badly as the Knicks did, however, and win.

So the alarm bells only continue to ring louder and louder.

“A lot,” Towns said of the frustration level around the team. “I don’t like losing any games, so of course, for me, the concern is winning the next one. Just staying focused on the task at hand, winning games and giving our fans something to cheer for.”

It dropped them to 2-8 in their past 10 games and 7-10 since winning the NBA Cup. They’ve gone on a four-game and this current three-game losing streak since the in-season tournament.

It’s not just the dog days of the season. This is a prolonged stretch.

Devin Booker, returning after missing one game with his own ankle injury, hurt the Knicks with 27 points. Collin Gillespie made the Knicks dizzy in the fourth quarter – he scored eight in the period as the Suns pulled away.

Og Anunoby looks to make a move on Oso Ighodaro during the second half of the Knicks’ 106-99 loss to the Suns on Jan.17, 2026 at Madison Square Garden. Robert Sabo for New York Post

And the Suns got strong production from their bench, Grayson Allen and Jordan Goodwin adding 16 and 13 points. In total, the Suns bench outscored the Knicks bench 39-14.

There has been so much talk recently about the lax Knicks defense. But it wasn’t the biggest problem on Saturday. They shot just 40 percent from the field on offense and had a nine-point disadvantage in points conceded off turnovers. It’s the fifth game since Jan. 1 they’ve scored 107 or fewer points. It’s the third time they’ve scored fewer than 100 in that stretch.

Towns, Anunoby and Miles McBride’s final numbers look OK — they finished with 23, 21 and 23 points, respectively. But they went quiet in the fourth quarter, during which the Knicks were outscored by four points.

“It’s a long season,” Anunoby said. “Anyone who’s been in the NBA a long time knows it goes like this. Especially, an 82-game season, there’s gonna be ups and downs. You just continue pushing.”

Miles McBride reacts after hitting a 3-pointer during the Knicks’ loss to the Suns at the Garden. Robert Sabo for NY Post

The Suns entered Sunday fourth in the NBA in offensive rebounds per game. Without Hart, the usual Knicks advantage on the glass went missing. During a five-minute stretch in the second quarter, the Suns grabbed four offensive rebounds and converted them into nine second-chance points. They finished with a four-point advantage in second-chance points.

“There’s concern there, but not to the point where we’re gonna overhaul everything,” Brown said. “We gotta work. We gotta look in the mirror, see how we can individually help the group, starting with me.”

The Knicks left the West Coast with Draymond Green taunting Towns as a lasting image. And now, they began a homestand with their own fans fed up with what they saw.

Title contender? Right now, the Knicks are way closer to the play-in than the top of the East.