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The New York Knicks gave center Tyson Chandler, the key to their improved defense, a day off against the Atlanta Hawks. Both teams seemed to scrap their defenses through three quarters of a shootout between playoff-bound teams.
However, it was a defensive play that decided the game when Amare Stoudemire blocked Marvin Williams’ dunk attempt at the buzzer to save the Knicks’ 113-112 win over the Hawks on Sunday.
Carmelo Anthony scored 39 points and hit the winning jumper with 1:40 left on Atlanta’s defensive miscommunication. Stoudemire finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds in his second game back after missing 13 with a sore back.
Williams scored a season-high 29 points in a rare start, but came up empty when he – and a full-throated crowd in Philips Arena – felt he was fouled…
Sunday didn’t help, and Atlanta All-Star Joe Johnson wasn’t happy about it after he spent much of the day chasing Anthony. Johnson scored 22 points on 9-for-14 shooting. Anthony was 14 for 32 as the only New York starter to shoot under 50 percent.
— Reported by the Associated Press
