New York Knicks edge Charlotte Hornets in overtime

Carmelo Anthony scored 35 points, including a turnaround jump shot with three seconds left in overtime, to give the New York Knicks a 113-111 victory over the Charlotte Hornets at Madison Square Garden.

The loss, the fourth straight for the Hornets, dropped them to 8-7. The Knicks are also 8-7.

Horents guard Kemba Walker’s corner jump shot didn’t make it to the rim, giving the Knicks the two-point victory.

Hornets guard Nic Batum finished with 18 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. Marco Belinelli scored 19 off the bench for the Hornets.

The Hornets have a rematch with the Knicks Saturday at Spectrum Center.

Three who mattered

Carmelo Anthony: He got the Knicks started early with several jump shots. Anthony is so dangerous as a driver and post-up player that its rough when he’s making the jump shots.

Cody Zeller: He looked sharp, considering he’d missed the previous three games with a sore right shoulder.

Marco Belinelli: Another strong performance off the bench.

Observations

▪  The Hornets got back center Zeller, who missed three games with a sore right shoulder. Coach Steve Clifford chose to start Zeller against the Knicks.

▪  With Zeller’s return to action, this was the first time this season Clifford had all of his top nine (his preferred rotation) available for the same game.

▪  Clifford got questions pregame from New York media about former Hornet Courtney Lee, who signed with the Knicks. Clifford said he loved what Lee contributed last season, but it was impossible, after commitments to Batum and Marvin Williams, to find the salary-cap flexibility to bring Lee back to Charlotte.

▪  Hornets power forward Williams suffered a hyperextended left knee in the second half and did not return to the game.

▪  Through the first 14 games, the Hornets lost 27 player-games to injury or illness.

Worth mentioning

▪  Clifford said he has to be patient with his expectations for Jeremy Lamb after Lamb missed 10 games with a hamstring strain, and could do little to retain conditioning while recovering from that injury.

▪  The Hornets sent guard Aaron Harrison to Greensboro for another Development League assignment with the Swarm.

▪  Both head coaches, Steve Clifford and Jeff Hornacek, were charged with a technical foul.

Report card

B OFFENSE: They generally kept pace with the Knicks despite not getting much from leading scorer Kemba Walker.

C- DEFENSE: Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis are tough covers, but the Hornets could do little with either one, particularly after Williams hurt his knee.

B- COACHING: The Hornets don’t close out games the way they did early on.

This story was originally published November 25, 2016 at 10:16 PM with the headline "New York Knicks edge Charlotte Hornets in overtime."