Heat game continues Knicks' ratings jump

ORLANDO, Fla. - The Knicks are back and so are the ratings. According to ESPN, the Knicks' stunning win over the Heat on Sunday night, which was nationally televised by ESPN, became the network's highest-rated NBA game in the New York market. An average of 4.3 percent of households in the nation's largest market tuned in to the game.

MSG Network, which has seen a huge spike in ratings since the acquisitions of Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups, also broadcast the game and claimed 2.9 percent of households. MSG has seen a 182-percent spike in ratings since the trade. Through the first three games, the Knicks are averaging a 4.28 Nielsen rating. In the 51 games before the trade, the team drew a 1.52 rating.

The Knicks' win led ESPN's "SportsCenter," which showed highlights of Amar'e Stoudemire's game-saving block on LeBron James and Billups' go-ahead three-point bomb. The Knicks have been the lead story on "SportsCenter" four times in the six days since the trade was reported Tuesday night.

"I think the league is excited about it, been waiting on a winning product here in New York,'' Stoudemire said, "and so the game [Sunday], there was a lot of buildup going into that matchup, and for us to come out victorious and the way we won it, by playing 'D' in that last stretch of the game, was impressive. I think ESPN is taking notice to that. They know we can be a pretty good team."

ESPN is looking to add more Knicks games to its NBA schedule in the final eight weeks of the season. The Knicks are scheduled to play twice more on ESPN, March 23 against the Magic and April 12 against the Bulls. The Knicks were not scheduled to play in the showcase time slot, Sunday afternoons on ABC, but that could change.

Of course, with great attention come great expectations.

"We haven't done nothing yet," Stoudemire said. "We still have a lot of room to improve and we have a lot of tough games in March."

With Neil Best