Carmelo Anthony scored 23 points as the New York Knicks cruised to a 114-92 win over the Sacramento Kings on Saturday at Power Balance Pavilion.
New York snapped a two-game skid and picked up a win in the final stop of its three-game West Coast road trip.
Sacramento has dropped three straight contests and suffered just its fourth loss to the Knicks in their past 11 meetings.
Anthony scored 11 of his points from the free-throw line while adding seven rebounds and five assists. All five New York starters scored in double figures.
After struggling on offense in the first two games of the road trip, New York exploded for 35 points in the first quarter. The Knicks shot 56 percent from the field and knocked down 6 of 9 from beyond the arc.
Rookie reserve forward Josh Harrellson stepped in for the injured Amar’e Stoudemire, who sat out with a sprained ankle. He scored 11 of his 14 points in the first half and shot 4 for 8 from beyond the arc.
Sacramento, which trailed by as much as 22 points, cut the lead to 12 on a thunderous two-handed flush from Jason Thompson with just under two minutes remaining in the second half. The Kings would get to within 11 points several times but couldn’t close the gap, struggling on offense and shooting just 34 percent from the field.
Marcus Thornton paced Sacramento with 14 points while fellow guard Tyreke Evans chipped in with 13 points. Thompson added 10 points and seven rebounds off the bench.
Knicks center Tyson Chandler overcame early foul trouble to net 22 points, going a perfect 10-for-10 from the charity stripe.
New York | Sacramento | |
Carmelo Anthony 23 | Scoring | Marcus Thornton 14 |
Toney Douglas 8 | Assists | DeMarcus Cousins 4 |
Josh Harrellson 12 | Rebounds | Chuck Hayes 13 |
Carmelo Anthony 11 | Free Throws Made | Isaiah Thomas 7 |
Toney Douglas 2 | Steals | Marcus Thornton 3 |
Tyson Chandler 3 | Blocks | DeMarcus Cousins 1 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
New York | 114 | 44.9 | 10-28 | 24-27 | 26 | 43 | 6 | 7 | 12 |
Sacramento | 92 | 34.9 | 6-22 | 26-41 | 15 | 51 | 2 | 7 | 14 |