On a night of emotional homecomings and warm sentiments, the New York Knicks’ final expression was a scowl, a mix of frustration and disappointment at another missed opportunity.
For the second straight game, the Knicks dug themselves an early hole, climbed out of it, then dug another and jumped in with two feet, resulting in a 95-85 loss to the Dallas Mavericks, leaving the Knicks 0-2 on the trip.
The Knicks (17-19) have lost three of their last five games, further eroding the good feelings sparked by Jeremy Lin’s emergence last month and underlining concerns about their chemistry with a newly overhauled rotation. Their struggles have coincided with the return of Carmelo Anthony and the additions of Baron Davis and J.R. Smith.
Photo: EPA
Anthony played another listless game, scoring six points in 30 minutes, 33 seconds, while going 2-for-12 from the field. Amar’e Stoudemire led the Knicks with 26 points and seven rebounds. Lin bounced back from Sunday’s rough game in Boston, finishing with 14 points and seven assists.
On the night he received his championship ring, Tyson Chandler made little impact against his former team, finishing with six points and eight rebounds in 26 minutes.
And no one could do much about Dirk Nowitzki, who pounded the Knicks for 28 points and led a late charge after the Knicks briefly pulled ahead.
The Knicks opened the fourth quarter with a 15-0 run to take a 78-77 lead. The Mavericks immediately responded with a 14-0 run to take control for good and avenge a loss to the Knicks last month at Madison Square Garden in New York.
For Lin, it was another long night of double teams, traps, hard fouls and hard falls. He spent a lot of time prone on the hardwood and rubbing sore limbs.
Jason Kidd leveled Lin in the third quarter with a smack to the back of his head as Lin drove the lane. Lin dropped hard to the floor and took several seconds to get up. He missed both free throws.
Coach Mike D’Antoni, furious with the play — and apparently contending it should have been a flagrant foul — drew a technical foul for screaming at the officials. That led to a four-point possession for the Mavericks, as Nowitzki hit the technical free throw and then followed with a three-point play for a 66-47 lead with 7:32 left in the quarter.
Less than a minute later, Lin was on the floor again, after being fouled by Ian Mahinmi. Lin rallied from there, zipping an alley-oop dunk to Landry Fields and scoring twice as the Knicks cut the deficit to nine points late in the quarter. However, Roddy Beaubois and Nowitzki sparked another Dallas run and the Mavs closed the period with a 77-63 lead.
Steve Novak hit two three-pointers to open the fourth as the Knicks pulled to within eight points.
The Knicks fell behind by 17 points in the first half, but rallied late behind Stoudemire.
Anthony dragged through another slow start, missing six of his first seven shots and a pair of free throws, but he scored the Knicks’ last four points of the first half to close the gap to 50-44.
The Knicks lost Jared Jeffries in the first half because of a sore right knee.
With Jeffries out, Josh Harrellson rejoined the rotation for the first time since Jan. 21, the night he broke his left wrist. Harrellson played 13 minutes, finishing with two points and seven rebounds.
For all of the Knicks’ newfound depth, they are still struggling to score some nights, or get consistently positive results from their recent additions, notably Davis and Smith.
Davis picked up three quick fouls in the first half and shot poorly all night (3-for-10), but he came through with some critical plays in the fourth quarter as the Knicks stormed back.
One moment, Davis was showing his worst impulsiveness, shooting an errant three-pointer from 9m. The next, he was darting into the lane for a huge driving layup in a 15-0 Knicks surge. Stoudemire followed with a fast-break layup — sparked by Iman Shumpert’s steal of Lamar Odom — cutting the deficit to 77-74. Stoudemire’s next layup pushed the Knicks ahead, 78-77, with 4:51 to play, their first lead since the first quarter.
Chandler’s evening began with jewelry, hugs and a standing ovation, in honor of his contributions to the Mavericks’ title run last season.
Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle introduced Chandler as “a guy that will go down as one of the all-time legendary Maverick players” who “brought grit, guts and charisma” to the lineup.
Chandler embraced Carlisle and then Mark Cuban, the Mavericks’ owner, who handed him his glitzy ring. Chandler held it aloft and showed it to the crowd, then tapped his heart in appreciation as they cheered.
The night turned less enjoyable from there. Chandler complained repeatedly to the referees about a lack of foul calls, and finally drew a technical foul late in the game, when he motioned for a traveling call on Nowitzki.
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