The Sixers couldn’t hit a shot the first three quarters. Meanwhile, Toney Douglas and Carmelo Anthony were throwing daggers. Melo was impossible to defend for most of the night and scored 31 points on 23 shots, including a few big ones right in the face of Andre Iguodala.
By the time Thaddeus Young and Elton Brand brought the Sixers back from a double-digit deficit, there was only about three minutes remaining. While it got close, Melo hit the final dagger after Andre hit one to give the Sixers a brief lead. Thad was everywhere, playing as well as he has in his whole career, viciously throwing down dunks and leaking out on the break to the tune of 25 points on 11-16 shooting. Elton stayed unguardable for the Knicks, adding 25 and 9 of his own, playing like a much younger man. If this is the Elton we see in the playoffs, Miami or Boston is in for a surprise.
With the win, the Knicks tie the season series with the Sixers and move a half-game up on them with 4 games to play for Philly. Doug Collins will take the time to go back to the board at practice and rebound from three straight losses with a game against Toronto on Friday.