An early fourth-quarter run fueled by their bench made it close, but the New York Knicks were unable to build enough momentum to avoid falling to the Dallas Mavericks Tuesday night at American Airlines Center.
Dirk Nowitzki led all scorers with 28 points, while Amare Stoudemire powered the Knicks (18-20) with 26. Carmelo Anthony scored just six points on 2-for-12 shooting, his lowest total since Feb. 6 against the Utah Jazz, when he was injured six minutes into the game.
Dallas (23-17) led by as many as 15 points and held a 77-63 lead entering the fourth quarter, but Steve Novak (13 points) and Iman Shumpert (five points, three assists and three steals) fueled a run with New York's second unit that put the Knicks ahead 78-77 with 4:54 remaining in the game. In fact, the Mavericks didn't score in the fourth quarter until Nowitzki nailed a 14-foot jumper at the 4:33 mark.
But as quickly as they had developed momentum, the Knicks lost it as the Mavericks built a 14-0 run over the next two-and-a-half minutes.
New York will remain in Texas Wednesday night for a game against the San Antonio Spurs (25-12). Tip-off is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET.
For more Knicks coverage, check out the SB Nation blog Posting And Toasting. Also, stay tuned to SB Nation New York.