Knicks strong in stretch, beat Cavs
Cleveland Cavaliers' Antawn Jamison (4) defends New York Knicks' Carmelo Anthony (7) during the first half. (March 31, 2012) Credit: AP
In a single moment, the stark reality of the Knicks' situation hit home with fans at Madison Square Garden Saturday night.
With 31/2 minutes to go in the first quarter of what turned out to be a 91-75 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, Toney Douglas walked to the scorer's table and checked into the game. That's right. Douglas, the point guard who hadn't seen anything but the bench and garbage time since the dawn of Lin-sanity, was sent into a game when it really mattered.
And it won't be the last time. With the news that Jeremy Lin is out for six weeks -- only four weeks remain in the regular season -- the Knicks are going to have to use every healthy body they have to try to hang on to the eighth and final playoff spot.
The victory, combined with the Bucks' loss to Memphis Saturday night, increased the Knicks' lead to 2½ games over ninth-place Milwaukee. They have gone 9-2 under interim coach Mike Woodson to raise their record to 27-26. "We have to go with the guys that are in uniform,'' Woodson said, "and I've got to get them to play."
The Knicks struggled against the Cavaliers, a troubled team playing without its best player, Kyrie Irving. The Knicks led 76-72 before producing a 15-2 run that clinched the game, and it took two big buckets down the stretch from J.R. Smith to put the Cavs away.
Smith came off the bench to put up 20 points, nine rebounds and five steals. He shot 8-for-15 from the field, including a three-pointer with 4:22 left that gave the Knicks an 81-72 lead and a driving dunk with 2:29 remaining that made it 87-74. The Knicks outscored the Cavaliers 25-15 in the fourth quarter.
"Today was a must win for us," Smith said as he came off the floor.
Said Carmelo Anthony, "We just gutted it out."
Lin, who is scheduled to have knee surgery early this week, wasn't the only Knicks starter not in uniform. Amar'e Stoudemire, who has a bulging disc in his lower back, is out for at least three more weeks.
Plus several players who were on the court are struggling with nagging injuries. Baron Davis, who started at point guard, managed to play 29:15 despite hamstring and calf injuries, contributing five assists and a key three-pointer in the fourth quarter. Anthony and Tyson Chandler played with groin injuries.
The Knicks are 3-1 in games Lin has missed. Saturday night, however, marked the first time in that stretch that they won a game without a monster performance from Anthony.
After averaging 29.7 points in his previous three games, Anthony scored 19, shooting 7-for-14. Chandler added 14 points, 12 rebounds and three blocked shots. Iman Shumpert had 10 points and five steals.
Although he saw his first first-quarter action since early February, it was not a remarkable night for Douglas, who began the season as the Knicks' starting point guard. He finished with five points, two rebounds and one assist in 9:51.
The loss was the seventh straight and 10th in the last 11 games for the Cavaliers, who were without rookie point guard Irving, out with an injured shoulder. The Cavaliers were led by Antawn Jamison's 13 points.
