Anthony Shines in Lackluster Win Against Lakers

Carmelo Anthony hears those voices saying he's getting old, that he can't jump like he once did.

Hard not to, since some of them are coming from right in his locker room.

Anthony answered in his own way Sunday, scoring 18 of his 31 points in the third quarter as the New York Knicks beat the Los Angeles Lakers 92-80.

He stared back toward his own bench in the second quarter after rising high to slam down a lob pass from Jason Smith, revealing that his teammates were teasing the 30-year-old forward recently after seeing him dunk.

"They said they haven't seen that before in a long time," Anthony said, "and we had this conversation before the game today, so it was just one of those moments where I had to look at the bench and let them know that I've still got it."

With Kobe Bryant out for the season and both teams among the worst in the NBA, it was anything but a Super Sunday in New York, where the national TV audience that was originally scheduled to see it missed the Lakers shooting 35.5 percent from the field.

Anthony stood out above the ugliness, turning mostly to his jumper in the third quarter to help New York pull away. He shot 13 of 25 and grabbed eight rebounds.

"Melo got hot, had it going and gave them a nice cushion," Lakers forward Carlos Boozer said. "We tried to fight back a little bit but it was a little too late."

Langston Galloway added 13 points for the Knicks, who have won five of seven and did it easily, building their first 20-point lead since they were up 21 in a victory over Philadelphia on Nov. 22.

Boozer had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers, who lost for the 10th time in 11 games. Jordan Clarkson also scored 19 points.

The Knicks are 10-38, slightly worse than the Lakers' 13-35 mark. Missing half its star power with Bryant sidelined after shoulder surgery, the game was yanked from ESPN -- the Knicks' fourth consecutive game that was dropped from the NBA's national TV schedule. 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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