Knicks-Bobcats Preview

By JEFF BARTL
Posted Dec 04 2012 9:15PM

Carmelo Anthony isn't ignoring the MVP chants he's been hearing lately, but he also realizes they're a bit premature given the New York Knicks have plenty of season remaining.

He sure didn't look like an MVP the last time he faced the Charlotte Bobcats.

New York faces a stretch of three road games in four nights and looks to get off to a good start by sending Charlotte to a fifth straight defeat Wednesday night.

Anthony scored 34 points to help lead the Knicks (12-4) to a 106-99 victory over Phoenix on Sunday, eliciting the chants from the home crowd. He's averaging 30.7 points over his last six, and his 26.6 per game average ranks among the NBA's best.

"If I said it doesn't feel good to hear, I'd be lying to you," Anthony said. "I'm just working, we're working as a team and as a result that's what you hear.

New York has won three straight after dropping three of its previous four.

"We're winning games and we're doing it in great fashion," Anthony said.

Anthony, though, had one of his worst performances as a professional the last time he faced the Bobcats, scoring a career-low one point while going 0 for 7 from the field. Despite his offensive woes, the Knicks still rolled to a 111-78 road win Jan. 24.

He and Tyson Chandler both sat out the most recent meeting April 26, when the Knicks won 104-84 for their third straight win over Charlotte.

Chandler, who spent the 2009-10 season with the Bobcats, had 15 points and grabbed 13 rebounds Sunday for New York, which also has a showdown with Miami on Thursday before facing Chicago on Saturday.

"This is a tough road trip," Chandler said. "Having three games in four nights, we have to make sure we concentrate, focus, don't get ahead of ourselves and go game by game."

The Knicks received good news Tuesday when Raymond Felton said he will play despite suffering a bone bruise in his left hand Sunday, when he scored 23 points and added seven assists. Felton, selected fifth overall by Charlotte in the 2005 draft, averaged 13.3 points in five seasons with the Bobcats before beginning his first stint with the Knicks in 2010.

Jason Kidd also is expected to return after missing the last four games with back spasms to give the Knicks a healthy starting lineup against the Bobcats, who are hoping to bounce back after another tough loss.

Charlotte (7-9) blew an 18-point fourth-quarter lead before falling 118-112 in overtime to Portland on Monday, its fourth straight defeat. Ben Gordon scored 29 points and hit eight 3-pointers off the bench, while Kemba Walker added 22 and seven assists.

"NBA games are long," Gordon said. "I've seen a lot of crazy things happen and it's never really over until it's over. So, when you have that type of advantage on a team, you just have to keep your foot on their neck and try and put them away."

Coach Mike Dunlap suggested the young Bobcats, whose last three defeats have come by six or fewer points, may not have been prepared well enough to hold that type of lead.

"It is unfamiliar territory," Dunlap said. "I thought I could have done a better job helping them, for example with substitutions. So I sort of point the finger at me on that."

New York has won seven of the last nine meetings.

Smith's 18-footer lifts Knicks over Bobcats 100-98

By STEVE REED
Posted Dec 06 2012 12:05AM

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) J.R. Smith is normally the guy watching Carmelo Anthony hit the game-winning shot, not the one knocking it down.

But with Anthony nursing a lacerated finger, the New York Knicks turned to Smith for the last shot and the eight-year NBA veteran delivered.

Smith hit a fallaway jumper from the left wing as time expired to give the Knicks a 100-98 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night.

"I was hurt, but J.R. made it feel better," Anthony said.

Anthony scored 20 of his 23 points in the first half, but went cold in the second half and wasn't on the floor for the final 2:10 after injuring his left hand diving into the Knicks' bench for a loose ball.

Knicks coach Mike Woodson said Anthony received five stitches in the middle finger of his left hand.

Anthony's finger was wrapped after the game and he said it was a deep cut. He said he sliced it open on something sharp on the bench.

"I'm going to take some time off from diving in the stands," he said.

Anthony said he isn't sure if he'll play in Thursday night's showdown at Miami.

"Right now it's numb, so I don't know," he said.

Tyson Chandler had 18 points and 17 rebounds for the Knicks. Smith finished with 13 points.

Kemba Walker had 25 points and 11 rebounds for the Bobcats (7-10), who have lost five straight games since equaling last season's win total. Gerald Henderson scored 11 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter in his second game back after a 13-game layoff.

The Bobcats appeared in position to win late in the game after a miss by Raymond Felton with 14 seconds left, but rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist made an ill-advised pass toward the top of the key and Smith stepped in front of it to intercept it.

After a timeout, Smith drove to the left side and hit an 18-footer over Kidd-Gilchrist.

"It was unbelievable," Smith said. "It was the first game-winner I've ever hit. I knew what move I wanted to go to with my step-back, but it was just a matter of getting there and setting him up to it. Fortunately he fell for it and I got it off."

The Bobcats had a foul to give, but elected not to foul Smith.

Anthony came in averaging 30.6 points over the past six games and was sharp early, hitting seven of his first 11 shots from the field for 20 points.

But he missed his first 10 shots of the second half.

Anthony drove hard to the lane at one point and put up a layup but was blocked by Bismack Biyombo, who gave him the Dikembe Mutumbo finger wag as Anthony pleaded for a goaltending call. Anthony didn't hit his first field goal of the second half until 2:35 remained in the game just before exiting.

Woodson called the win a "total team effort."

The final minute was a frantic one, particularly for the Bobcats, who seemed to panic at times and incur self-inflicted turnovers.

"We got three key steals and a 24-second violation and we had a 5-second count," Woodson said. "Those are all winning defensive plays coming down the stretch."

The most costly was Kidd-Gilchrist's bad pass over the middle. After Felton missed, the Bobcats pushed the ball up the floor and instead of pulling the ball out for the last-second shot, the rookie threw the ball into double coverage.

"I thought he had an open lane," Walker said. "I guess they recovered fast. He's young. You know, we're young. We're going to stick with him and get on to the next one."

Walker, who has made a major improvement from his rookie season, stepped up his game against Felton and the Knicks.

On one third-quarter drive, he electrified the crowd by faking out a defender near the top of the key, driving the left side of the lane before spinning awkwardly in the air and laying it off the glass and drawing a foul on Steve Novak for a three-point play.

The Bobcats led 53-51 despite 20 first-half points from Anthony.

Charlotte got a strong performance from Walker and Ben Gordon, who continued his red-hot shooting in the early going and finished with 17 points. Gordon came in having made 18 of 26 3-point attempts over the past three games and 3 of 5 against the Knicks.

Walker continued to play well at home with 12 points and six assists before the break.

Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap said despite the loss, the close game is more proof the Bobcats are making good strides.

"We're playing everyone tough," Dunlap said. "We're just not getting the results right now, but there's no reason to be down about this thing. We believe as we gain experience we'll be able to perform in more of the situations that we get with these young guys."

NOTES: Kidd-Gilchrist was selected by the NBA as the Eastern Conference rookie of the month for November. ... Panthers quarterback Cam Newton was a guest of Bobcats owner Michael Jordan in his owner's suite. ... Jason Kidd had seven points and three blocked shots in 25 minutes after missing the last four games with a sore back.

Notebook: Knicks 100, Bobcats 98

Bill Kiser, For NBA.com
Posted Wed Dec 05, 2012 11:03 PM - Updated Wed Dec 05, 2012 11:03 PM

THE FACTS: J.R. Smith hit a fadeaway jumper under pressure at the buzzer, capping a late fourth-quarter rally and give the New York Knicks a 100-98 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night.

Smith, who finished with 13 points, hit the 18-footer over rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist as the Knicks (13-4) overcame an eight-point deficit in the final six minutes to win their fourth straight game.

Kemba Walker had 25 points and 11 assists for the Bobcats (7-10), who led 93-85 with 6:12 remaining. However, the Knicks held Charlotte to just five points the rest of the way en route to the fifth consecutive loss for the Bobcats.

QUOTABLE: "It was unbelievable. It's the first game winner I've ever hit. I knew what move I wanted to go to -- my step-back. Fortunately, [Kidd-Gilchrist] fell for it and I got it off. He did a great job, because I had to shoot it over his head."

-- J.R. Smith

THE STAT: The Bobcats had 14 turnovers, with five of those coming on their final six possessions of the fourth quarter. The Knicks forced a pair of steals, got a 24-second shot clock violation, a 5-second inbounds call and a traveling call on Ben Gordon with 39 seconds left and the score tied 98-98.

TURNING POINT: Those final six minutes. With the turnovers limiting the Bobcats' possessions, Charlotte was just 2-for-8 from the field, while the Knicks went 7-for-3 -- a 15-5 swing, capped by Smith's game winner.

QUOTABLE II: "The huddle was very calm. They were like, 'Hey, we can win this.' We missed a lot of good shots tonight, shots that we normally make. But J.R. hung in there and made the shot when it counted."

-- Knicks coach Mike Woodson

HOT: Carmelo Anthony in the first half. The Knicks' All-Star scored 20 points over the first two quarters on 7-for-11 shooting (including 3-for-3 on 3-pointers).

NOT: 'Melo in the second half -- he missed 11 consecutive shots, including four 3-pointers, before hitting a jumper with 2:35 left in the fourth quarter that pulled the Knicks within 98-96. Anthony finished with 23 points.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Anthony left the game with 2:10 remaining in the fourth quarter after suffering a cut on his left middle finger while diving for a loose ball. He required five stitches.

INSIDE THE ARENA: As part of the promotion around the Bobcats' Wednesday night home game series, team officials brought out famed boxing announcer Michael Buffer to announce the starting lineups.

ROOKIE WATCH: Kidd-Gilchrist, who was named the Eastern Conference's rookie of the month before the start of Wednesday's game, finished with 12 points. But he also had four turnovers, including Smith's steal with less than 10 seconds remaining that set up the Knicks' game winning shot.

QUOTABLE III: "We're playing everyone tough. We're just not getting the results right now, but there's no reason to be down about this thing. It doesn't feel good, but we believe that we'll just be pushing forward and we'll be able to perform in more of the situations that we get with these young guys."

-- Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap

NOTABLE: Just from looking at the stat sheet, the Bobcats came out on top of the Knicks in nearly every category -- field goal percentage (47.0 percent, to 42.4), 3-point percentage (43.8 to 31.7), free throw percentage (86.7 to 69.2), rebounds (50-36), even points scored in the paint (52 -40).

NOTABLE II: Again, turnovers -- the Bobcats' 14 turnovers led to 23 points for the Knicks. Charlotte forced New York into eight turnovers, but none in the fourth quarter, and only managed to turn those into four points.

UP NEXT: For the Knicks, Thursday @ Miami, Sunday @ Chicago, Monday vs. Denver. For the Bobcats, Friday @ Milwaukee, Saturday vs. San Antonio, Tuesday vs. Golden State.

• Knicks: Shumpert, Stoudemire
• Bobcats: Thomas

• Knicks: --
• Bobcats: Walker

• Lead Changes: 8
• Times Tied: 15

• Arena: Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, NC
• Officials: #13 Monty McCutchen, #74 Curtis Blair, #45 Brian Forte
• Attendance: 18097
• Duration: 2:15