Cleveland, OH (SportsNetwork.com) - Carmelo Anthony filled the stat sheet with 26 points, seven rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks and the New York Knicks defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers, 107-97, on Saturday night.
Amar'e Stoudemire provided 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Tyson Chandler supplied 15 points and 11 boards for the Knicks, who have won three in a row on the heels of a seven-game losing streak.
"We've been trying to figure out the chemistry on both ends of the court all along, but it's better late than never," Stoudemire said.
Kyrie Irving had 30 points, eight rebounds and eight assists and Spencer Hawes added 21 points and 10 boards for Cleveland, which has dropped four straight and seven of its last nine.
"We're fighting for our lives," Cleveland head coach Mike Brown said. "This team was a game behind us and I just feel like we didn't come out with the right mindset to compete with this team for the eighth spot."
Longtime Cavaliers center Zydrunas Ilgauskas became the seventh player in franchise history to have his number retired. LeBron James was in attendance for the halftime ceremony.
The game was tied at 80-80 with 10:24 left before Anthony netted five of the final six points of a 14-3 Knicks run to help them seize control of the contest. His turnaround jumper staked New York to a 94-83 cushion with 5:21 to go.
Cleveland never got within less than seven the rest of the way.
Earlier, the Knicks led 23-19 after a quarter of play and Anthony scored the last nine points of a 10-2 spurt to help them establish a 45-35 margin.
New York headed into the break with a 58-50 advantage.
The Cavs began the third on a 9-2 flurry to pull within 60-59. Anthony's triple with 2.9 ticks remaining in the third gave the Knicks a 77-76 edge going into the final frame.
