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Marbury, Knicks look for consistency vs. struggling Hawks

Mar 3, 2007 - 5:28 PM New York (27-33) at Atlanta (22-37) 7:00 pm EST

ATLANTA (Ticker) -- Without Jamal Crawford, Stephon Marbury is taking charge for the New York Knicks.

With Crawford out for the season, Marbury hopes to continue to pick up the slack when the Knicks take on the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday.

One of the Knicks' most effective shotmakers in the final period, Crawford left a huge void in New York's lineup. More of a facilitator this season, Marbury must return to a scorer's mentality in order to fill his backcourt mate's role.

After scoring 23 points in a loss at lowly Boston on Wednesday, he was again assertive - scoring 34 points on 11-of-16 shooting, including 4-of-7 from the arc - two nights later in a 106-97 victory over Golden State.

Despite Marbury's strong play, the Knicks have been extremely inconsistent lately, alternating wins and losses in their last nine games. New York (27-33) is two games behind New Jersey for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

New York hopes to end its inconsistent stretch when it faces Atlanta, which has lost six of its last seven games, including a 93-92 last-second loss to Washington on Friday.

The Hawks had a chance to win the game but Tyronn Lue had his shot blocked on a deep jumper as the buzzer sounded.