Heat Throw Cold Water on Knicks’ Hot Streak

NEW YORK -- Less than 24 hours before the New York City area was set to host its first Super Bowl, Madison Square Garden was buzzing and ready to explode for the previously struggling New York Knicks, who had been playing their best basketball of the season while welcoming the two-time defending NBA champion Miami Heat.

The Miami Heat's Dwyane Wade and LeBron James celebrate 

their victory over the New York Knicks on February 1, 2014

(Photo: Jon Wagner)

But every time the Knicks (19-28) made a run to stay close, the Heat (33-13) did what champions do -- Miami responded in kind and finally put away New York for good.

The last of those moments came with the Heat clinging to a five-point lead three minutes into the fourth quarter, before Miami went on a deciding 12-3 run, to take a game-high 16-point lead, en route to a 106-91 victory on Saturday night.

With their four-game winning streak stopped, the Knicks finished 4-4 on their longest homestand in 28 years (after on 0-3 start). They also matched their loss total from last year’s Atlantic Division-winning, 54-28 squad, with 35 fewer wins to this point.

Still, the mood in New York’s locker room remained positive, as team leaders Carmelo Anthony (26 points, eight rebounds, eight rebounds, season-high-tying seven turnovers), Tyson Chandler (eight points, game-best 11 rebounds) and J.R. Smith (20 points) focused more toward the Knicks’ improved play over their prior four games over dwelling on New York falling a game short of matching its season-high five-game winning streak.

“I like the direction that we’re going in right now as far as our mentality, our focus.” Anthony said. “Tonight was just some slippage that happened. We’ve got to bounce back [in our next game] on Monday… this year and last year is no comparison, but as long as we continue to get better, we can make a push for the playoffs… I don’t want to let this game get anybody down as a team.”

Minutes earlier, Chandler said, “I look at the way we’ve been playing of late and I’m happy with it. We ran into a bump in the road tonight [against] a tough team, obviously, but we’ve been playing good basketball… it’s encouraging and I feel like we have some things to build on... I feel like it’s wide open. I was looking at the [Eastern Conference] standings today and I feel like we’ve got a real opportunity to shoot up to the third spot or so and try to get ourselves in the mix.”

In defeat, Smith said, “I don’t think it’s a setback at all. We’ve just got to regroup and get ready for [our next game on] Monday.”

Happy with the victory, head coach Erik Spoelstra noted of New York, “When this team is healthy and they have their guys, they are every bit as good as they were last year.”

Similar to the Knicks’ last game against the Heat (a 102-92 New York victory at MSG, 23 days earlier), forward LeBron James (30 points on 13-for-22 shooting, eight rebounds, seven assists, game-high six steals) and guard Dwyane Wade (22 points on 10-for-15 shooting) led Miami offensively again.

Back then, James had 32 points on 12-of-17 shooting as Wade added 23 points while making 11 of 15 shots. But with 12 points, Norris Cole was the only other player in double figures, as the Knicks took (82-68) and made (44-37) considerably more shots.

This time, the Heat reversed that trend while attempting (76-67) and making (41-33) significantly more field goals. And Miami also got a little more help for James and Wade than last time, with forward Sean Battier scoring 16 points (on 5-of-8 shooting) as point guard Mario Chalmers had 11 and reserve forward Chris Andersen added 10 on just two shots (making both), while going 6-for-9 at the free throw line.

Entering the night with a scant 4.4 points per game, Battier got the Heat off to a good start by cancelling out the hot shooting of Smith, who was scoring more than three times as many (12.4) points per game.

Each led his respective teams in the opening quarter with 11 points on identical 4-of-5 shooting, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range.

After the Knicks scored the first five points, the Heat tied the game at 12-apeice and closed the period on a 12-5 run, to lead, 29-22.

That margin doubled, to 46-32, on a James layup just past the midpoint of the second quarter, with Miami torching New York both from the perimeter (7-for-12) and two-point range (11-for-17) to that point.

However, the Knicks ended the half on a 14-7 spurt, to pull within 53-46, and then scored the first five points of the second half to move to within 53-51. But the Heat answered with a 13-4 stretch to push the lead to 68-55 midway through the period.

Again though, New York fought back, and after a 14-5 run that ended when Anthony banked in a 3-pointer, the Knicks were back within 73-69 as the Garden crowd became the loudest it was all night.

Two Andersen free throws gave Miami a modest 77-71 cushion entering the final quarter before the Heat, up 84-79 early in the fourth period, got on a roll with the help of a questionable foul call on Chandler.

Following a layup by Cole (9 points, on 4-of-5 shooting) that extended the Heat’s edge to 90-81, Chandler was whistled for an illegal screen in front of rookie reserve guard Tim Hardaway, Jr. (17 points on 7-of-14 shooting). The play waived off a left wing 3-pointer by Hardaway that would have trimmed New York’s deficit to 90-84 with just over half a period left.

Quickly taking advantage, Miami scored the next six points, to lead, 96-81, as Cole made a pull-up jumper before James scored the Heat’s next six points.

Felton lost the ball, which bounced right into the hands of James, who raced to the other end for dunk, before he then beat Smith with the same post-up, turn and fadeaway jumper combination from each wing.

LeBron James looks to drive against the New York Knicks' Tim

Hardaway, Jr. on February 1, 2014 (Photo: Jon Wagner)

James first operated against Smith on the right side before toasting him on the left, despite some close defense from Smith.

Three Heat possessions later, James swelled the lead to 102-86, with 2:01 left, when he drained a high-arching rainbow jumper from the right corner with Smith nearly blocking it. The Knicks never got closer than 13 points thereafter, as James, a 10-time All-Star, got into All-Star Game mode at one point late, when he led a break and then through traffic, tried to go off the glass to himself, with the play resulting in a loose ball foul on New York.

“I thought our guys battled and LeBron was LeBron,” head coach Knicks Mike Woodson said. “He made every play down the stretch to help them secure the lead and walk out of this building with a win… I thought we competed for most of the game. [With Miami], you’ve got to play 48 minutes and you can’t let ‘em off the hook, and I thought we did that in the fourth quarter.”

Later, Anthony wouldn’t make a Super Bowl prediction, but he did get in the spirit of the big game (to be played at nearby MetLife Stadium), by tackling James on a fast break in the third quarter.

“He was coming at me full speed,” Anthony said with a smile. “I’ve got to get the first hit before he [gives] a hit. As long as he was alright, that’s all I care about.” But when told James had a big bag of ice on his shoulder, Anthony jokingly said, “I did my job then.”

James, a good friend of Anthony’s, said, “This is not the first time I’ve been tackled… it’s not a basketball play but at the same time, he wrapped me up and I don’t think he intended for me to hit the ground.”

Before the game, James mentioned that the Garden remains one of his favorite places to play, but said that competing there during New York City's first-ever Super Bowl weekend didn't necessarily enhance that experience.

Wade, meanwhile, discussed the transition of power at the top of the league office, as Saturday's games marked the first day that NBA games used basketballs bearing the signature of new commissioner Adam Silver, who replaced the retired David Stern after his 30-year run in that post.

"He did an unbelievable job of growing the game," Wade said of Stern, while adding on Silver, "He will be a good commissioner, I believe."

Leaving the locker room after the contest, Anthony commented on Tyler Ennis, a promising freshman for Syracuse, the school which Anthony led to its only national championship (in 2003).

Second-ranked Syracuse was wrapping up a thrilling overtime win over Duke (as the Knicks and Heat were in the first quarter) to achieve its best start ever, at 21-0, while remaining one of just two unbeaten teams in the nation.

“He’s legit,” Anthony said of Ennis. “I’ve got to make sure he stays.”

Trying to get back to its recent winning ways, New York will visit the Milwaukee Bucks -- as they seek a third win in as many games between the teams this season -- on Monday night.

Jon Wagner is a Yahoo Sports contributor covering the New York Knicks, New York Giants and New York Mets. He also covers the Knicks, Hofstra University men's basketball and the New York Cosmos for New York Sports Day. Follow Jon on Twitter, @JonathanJWagner, and visit his Yahoo Contributor Network page by clicking here.