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'Melo, Knicks pass Sixers for No. 6 seed

Apr 7, 2011 - 2:51 AM Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Carmelo Anthony's three-point dagger with 11.8 seconds to play staved off the fast-charging Philadelphia 76ers, as New York took over the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race with a 97-92 victory at the Wells Fargo Center.

"I really didn't have anywhere to go," said Anthony. "I just pulled up. As soon as I let it go, it felt good."

Anthony scored 31 points on 12-of-23 shooting, including five three-pointers, and had 11 rebounds while Toney Douglas kept the Knicks' heads above water, scoring eight straight for the visitors as the Sixers were coming all the way back from 19 points down.

Douglas scored 17 points off the bench, while Amare Stoudemire added 18 points and six rebounds for New York, which has won five straight. It came at a cost, as Chauncey Billups left the game right with a right leg contusion, and Stoudemire suffered a left ankle injury. He will be re-evaluated on Thursday, and his status for Friday's game at New Jersey is up in the air.

Thaddeus Young energized his team with 25 points and seven rebounds off the bench, while Elton Brand compiled 24 points and nine rebounds and Andre Iguodala contributed 15 points, six assists and five rebounds, including a three-pointer that brought the Sixers within 92-91 with 34.9 ticks to go.

Anthony then drained the trey, and Young made just 1-of-2 foul shots with 6.9 seconds left. Douglas' two free throws on the other end sealed the deal.

"We had a chance, and I couldn't have been more proud of the way they fought," said Sixers head coach Doug Collins of his team.

New York's winning streak has allowed the Knicks to leapfrog a half-game in front of the Sixers, who have dropped three games in succession, for the No. 6 seed.

"We wanted to win. I don't really care about six or seven (seed)," said Anthony.

The Knicks held a double-digit margin in the fourth until Jrue Holiday's three made the score 83-74 with just over eight minutes left. Young added a mid- range bucket, and after a Derrick Brown free throw for the Knicks, Brand scored for a 84-78 game. Douglas connected from long range and the lead was back up to a comfortable distance.

Philadelphia scored eight in succession, mostly in transition, with driving layups by Young and Meeks putting the home team in front, 88-87, for the first time since early in the first quarter. Douglas calmly sank a huge responding three with 1:47 to go then made two foul shots before Iguodala's three- pointer.

New York put on the clamps in the first quarter, holding the Sixers to 19 points while grabbing a seven-point lead. The Sixers had just eight points nearly halfway through the period, yet held a 13-12 lead with just over four minutes remaining thanks to Meeks' pullup jumper. The Knicks scored the next seven points capped by Williams' trey, and racked up 14 in total in the last 3:50 to take a 26-19 advantage.

The Knicks' lead grew to as many as 16 points at 42-26 on Anthony's pull-up jumper with just over five minutes to play, but the Sixers pushed back, rattling off 11 consecutive points with Jodie Meeks' two free throws bringing the home team within five. New York continued the game of spurts, using its defense to trigger a 7-0 burst capped by two Jared Jeffries three throws.

The 49-41 halftime lead was due in part to Anthony's 13 points and the Sixers failing to make any of their seven three-point attempts.

It was more of the same in the third, as after the Sixers narrowed the deficit slightly to six, the Knicks ran off 11 more in a row with Billups' technical free throw and jumper opening a 60-43 margin. Landry Fields' slam in transition made the score 69-50, and the double-digit lead held to the quarter's final seconds.

Game Notes

The sixth and seventh seeds will likely play either Boston or Miami in the first round...Billups scored just three points on 1-of-7 shooting...Evan Turner scored four points with seven rebounds off the bench for the Sixers...Holiday added 11 points and Meeks nine, despite the Kentucky product's 0-for-8 line from long range...The Sixers had a 10-point edge in the paint, 36-26...The Knicks have won five of the last seven meetings between the two teams...New York snapped a five-game road losing streak and won its 17th road game, the most since it won 18 during the 2000-2001 season.