MIAMI — Raymond Felton scored a season-high 27 points, and the New York Knicks connected on 18 3-pointers to more than offset the absence of Carmelo Anthony while topping Miami for the second time this season, beating the Heat 112-92 on Thursday night.
Steve Novak scored 18 points, J.R. Smith added 13 and Tyson Chandler scored 13 for the Knicks, who won their fifth straight and moved 1½ games clear of Miami for the best record in the Eastern Conference. The Knicks made eight 3-pointers in the third quarter alone, the most by any NBA team in any quarter so far this season.
Anthony sat out, one night after needing five stitches to close a cut on the middle finger of his left hand.
LeBron James nearly picked up his second straight triple-double — 31 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists — in Miami’s second straight loss. Dwyane Wade scored 13 points, Chris Bosh had 12 and Udonis Haslem added 10 for the Heat, who fell to 8-1 at home.
Rasheed Wallace scored 12 and Jason Kidd added 11 for the Knicks, who finished 18 for 44 from 3-point range.
Also on Thursday:
Mavericks 97
Suns 94
PHOENIX — O.J. Mayo scored 23 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 35 seconds to go, and Dallas beat Phoenix, the Suns’ fifth loss in a row.
