Knicks beat Magic by 38, end home skid
New York Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony (7) shoots over Orlando Magic’s Andrew Nicholson during the second quarter Friday, December 6, 2013, at the Madison Square Garden in New York. AP
NEW YORK — Carmelo Anthony had 20 points and 11 rebounds, and the New York Knicks snapped a seven-game home losing streak by beating the Orlando Magic 121-83 on Friday night for their first victory at Madison Square Garden since October.
Andrea Bargnani and J.R. Smith each added 17 points for the Knicks, who followed their 113-83 rout of Brooklyn on Thursday with an even more powerful performance, giving them consecutive victories for the first time this season after a nine-game losing streak.
The Knicks hadn’t won at home since beating Milwaukee in their season opener on Oct. 30. The seven-game skid had matched the longest in franchise history, set during the 2007-08 season.
They ended it emphatically, just missing the biggest victory in the NBA this season, the Clippers’ 39-point rout of Chicago on Nov. 24, according to STATS.
The Knicks made a season-best 17 3-pointers – one night after hitting 16 – and turned it into another easy night for Anthony, who took only 10 shots.
New York moved ahead of Brooklyn and out of last place. Despite their struggles, the Knicks (5-13) entered only 2 1/2 games behind first-place Boston in the pathetic Atlantic Division, and can move even closer when they host the Celtics on Sunday afternoon.
Arron Afflalo scored 20 points for the Magic, who dropped their fourth straight. Victor Oladipo added 17 points and nine rebounds.
Amare Stoudemire sat out for the Knicks, still not ready to play on back-to-back nights after offseason knee surgery. No matter, as Metta World Peace picked up the extra minutes and scored 12 points. Tim Hardaway Jr. finished with 15.
The Knicks broke it open by outscoring the Magic 30-15 in the third quarter to open a 20-point lead. The highlight came on a ferocious drive and dunk by Iman Shumpert.
Orlando fell to 1-8 on the road, running out to a quick start but then getting run over from there.
The Magic hit six of their first seven shots, including all three 3-pointers, to storm to a 15-5 lead. The Knicks started 2 for 12 but eventually got going and trailed just 31-28 after one.
The Knicks answered with five 3-pointers in the first 4 minutes of the second quarter, going ahead 43-35, and took a 59-54 advantage into halftime.
Jameer Nelson was back for Orlando after missing three straight games with a sprained left foot, but leading rebounder Nik Vucevic missed his second in a row with a sprained left ankle.
NOTES: The Knicks’ seven-game winning streak against Orlando is their longest active streak against an opponent. They have beaten Milwaukee six straight times.
