Josh Hart joked that he didn’t expect to “play 47 minutes or have a triple-double” Saturday night in his first game in a Knicks uniform, but contributing at both ends of the floor to a key win certainly represented a nice first step for the trade-deadline acquisition.

Former Villanova teammate Jalen Brunson dropped a game-high 38 points, while the hard-nosed Hart provided all of the advertised intangibles in 25 minutes off the bench, to propel the Knicks to a 126-120 victory over the Jazz before an appreciative Garden crowd.

“They’re embracing me right now and I love it,” Hart said of the MSG fans. “I’m going to come in every day. I’m a blue collar player. I’m going to do whatever I need to do, whatever the team needs me to do that day … I’m going to bring toughness, physicality and just smart plays.

“It felt great for them to show me love the first time I came in. After those shots, it felt great.”

All-Star forward Julius Randle finished with 31 points, RJ Barrett scored 17 of his 20 in the second half and Immanuel Quickley added 15 points off the bench as the Knicks shook off their loss Friday in Philadelphia and improved to 31-27 entering a home matchup Monday against the gutted Nets.

In the first home game after acquiring Hart in a trade Wednesday night with the Trail Blazers, the Garden had an unmistakable heartbeat from the start.

The 27-year-old Hart replaced second-year guard Miles McBride in coach Tom Thibodeau’s nine-man rotation, and he played ahead of Quentin Grimes for the all of the final period, logging the final 16:24 of closeout time.

Hart did a bit of everything and finished with 11 points, seven rebounds (four offensive), four assists and four steals.

“I wasn’t quite sure [what to expect], but that’s who he is,” Thibodeau said of Hart. “And to be able to do it, the way he did. … He had to go through his physical [Friday], drove down to Philly to be with the team and came back today on a back-to-back.

“To jump out there and play as well as he did is a credit to him. He brought a lot of energy and toughness to the game.”

Hart received a loud ovation when he checked in, along with Quickley and Isaiah Hartenstein, with 2:54 remaining in the first quarter. The 6-foot-5 guard drew a foul on a drive to the basket on his first offensive possession and sank one free throw. He then collected a long feed from Brunson for a layup to draw more cheers from the home crowd.

“It’s like second nature, it goes back to practicing against each other the two years we were together [at Villanova],” Brunson said of his chemistry with Brunson. “We were always constantly competing. When we got to the court we just knew that we wanted to win. We both try to make the right play at the right time.”

Hart’s strong play at both ends was exemplified when he picked off Walker Kessler’s pass and sent a crisp bounce pass to Obi Toppin, who scored on a cutting bucket to give the Knicks an 11-point cushion nearly five minutes into the second quarter.

After the Jazz drew back within six, 62-56, at intermission, Hart ran down two offensive rebounds on one possession in the third, leading to a Randle tip shot that helped the Knicks carry an 87-84 lead into the final session.

Lauri Markkanen (29 points) sank two 3-pointers in the opening five minutes of the fourth quarter to even the score, but Hart buried a 3-pointer from the corner off Brunson’s feed to put the Knicks up 104-101 with 6:44 remaining.

After Brunson also connected from beyond the arc, another offensive board by Hart led to Barrett’s corner 3-pointer for a six-point bulge with 3:46 to play. Hart drew another huge roar from the crowd and banged his chest after swishing his second 3-pointer for a 123-114 advantage with 1:42 left.

“Wherever the team needs, he’s willing to fill that. He’s always been that player. He’s unselfish,” Brunson said of Hart. “We have a lot of unselfish guys who are willing to do whatever it takes to win.

“I think as long as we’re keeping that as our main priority, we’re going to continue to get better.”