NEW YORK — The enduring image of the Knicks’ 99-93 loss to the Miami Heat Sunday afternoon was LeBron James stealing a J.R. Smith pass on the perimeter in the game’s final seconds and gliding downcourt for an uncontested dunk.
In the end, it was James, the presumptive NBA MVP, overcoming a third-quarter knee injury and putting up 29 points, 11 rebounds and 7 assists to will his team to its 14th straight victory before a capacity crowd at Madison Square Garden.
It wasn’t the Knicks making a statement by moving to 3-0 against Miami this season, and throwing some intrigue into the Eastern Conference playoff situation. To read more of this story, click here
NEW YORK — As a six-time NBA All-Star, Amar’e Stoudemire confesses winning Sixth Man of the Year honors was never on his mind.
“I never thought about the Sixth Man of the Year ever in my career,” he said after putting up a season-best 21 points as the Knicks routed the Sacramento Kings, 120-81, at MSG. “But it may be a possibility.”
If Stoudemire keeps up this level of play, he may challenge Jamal Crawford of the Clippers and teammate J.R. Smith for consideration for the award. To read more of this story, click here
NEW YORK — There are times when Hallice Cooke looks passive as a basketball player, and other times when he can be a very dangerous man from long range.
Fortunately for St. Anthony, Cooke got into a groove at just the right time.
The 6-foot-3 Oregon State-bound shooting guard earned MVP honors at the SNY Invitational after putting up a game-best 22 points as St. Anthony won its 81st consecutive game, 52-45, over Long Island Lutheran at City College.
St. Anthony (16-0) has now won the SNY Invitational the last two years it has been held — 2011 and ’13.
“Coach [Bob Hurley] didn’t really have the leash on me today,” Cooke, who went 7-of-13 overall and 6-of-10 from beyond the arc, said with a broad smile. “He kind of let me play and he told me that he wasn’t going to take me out of the game. So I just had to be smart and play through mistakes.” To read more of this story, click here
Here’s my TV hit from Friday in which I went out on a limb, ahem, and picked St. Anthony to win the SNY Invitational.
Temple-bound Josh Brown and the Friars take their 80-game winning streak into today’s 4 p.m. championship game against UConn-bound forward Kentan Facey and Long Island Lutheran.
Cardinal Hayes meets Boys & Girls in the 2 p.m. consolation game.
Wesley Myers is a 6-foot-2 senior guard at Brooklyn Boys & Girls, the three-time New York PSAL champions and reigning New York State Federation champs. He and his teammates will face St. Anthony in the SNY Invitational on Friday at City College. Long Island Lutheran meets Cardinal Hayes in the other game Friday. The consolation game and championship will be played Saturday. Here’s his Player Blog.
What’s Up Basketball Family? It’s Wesley Myers here with the 411 on my senior season at the home of the NY State Champions.
It’s been a rather difficult first half of the season because we have a lot of newcomers who are inexperienced with winning and some of the returning players are now thrust into significant playing roles. To read more of this story, click here
GREENBURGH, N.Y. — Mike Woodson knows a thing or two about interim coaches having immediate success in New York.
A year ago, Woodson led the Knicks to an 18-6 regular-season record after taking over for Mike D’Antoni. Woodson has continued that run of success this season, leading the Knicks to a 25-13 start.
On Martin Luther King Day at Madison Square Garden, Woodson will go up against another interim coach enjoying success in New York. P.J. Carlesimo is 10-2 since taking over as the head man of the resurgent Brooklyn Nets (24-16), who trail the Knicks by just two games in the Atlantic Division standings.
“They’re 10-2 under P.J., so they’re doing something right,” Woodson said Sunday after practice. “In watching them on tape, they got a lot of good things. And I’ve said this from Day 1, I like the makeup of their ballclub and it should be a good game.” To read more of this story, click here
NEW YORK — Carmelo Anthony said the plan was always to return from his finger injury on Sunday.
It didn’t matter that Sunday’s opponent happened to be his former team, the Denver Nuggets, the same team he forced into trading him to the Knicks in a blockbuster deal in February 2011.
“It didn’t have nothing to do with that,” Anthony said in the Knicks locker room following his 34-point outburst in the Knicks’ 112-106 victory over the Nuggets at Madison Square Garden. “I don’t got no hard feelings towards them.”
It just happened to work out that Anthony’s return from an injury to his left middle finger after a two-game absence coincided with Denver’s arrival in New York, which owns the best record in the Eastern Conference (15-5). To read more of this story, click here
New York City native Russ Smith scored a career-high 31 points and No. 5 Louisville cruised past Missouri-Kansas City 99-47 on Saturday.
Smith was 12 of 18 from the field and 3 of 5 from 3-point range in surpassing his previous high of 30 last year against Kentucky. He led Louisville (8-1) in scoring for the sixth time in nine games, while also adding seven rebounds.
“There’s been a lot game that I’ve shown great effort,” Smith told Jody Demling in the above video. “I think tonight I felt like it was more great maturity. I’ve seen myself mature as far as not actually going out to hunt shots, but letting it all come to me.”
Raymond FeltonandJason Kiddare not 100 percent healthy, but both are anxious to play on the Knicks’ upcoming three-game road trip.
Felton, the team’s starting point guard, banged his left hand on Sebastian Telfair’s knee during Sunday’s win over the Phoenix Suns. An MRI revealed a contusion and a bone bruise. Kidd, the starting shooting guard, has missed four games with back spasms and is listed as probable for Wednesday’s game in Charlotte.
“I’m alright, sore but I’ll be alright,” Felton told reporters after practice Tuesday. “I’m playing. It’s going to be tough, but I’m going to play.” To read more of this story, click here
