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Lin leads Knicks past Cavs

Mar 1, 2012 - 7:13 AM New York, NY (Sports Network) - Jeremy Lin was overwhelmed by the Miami Heat his last time out, but he bounced back in a big way against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday.

Lin, who went 1-of-11 from the floor while committing eight turnovers against Miami, scored 19 points to go with 13 assists while turning the ball over just once as the New York Knicks downed Cleveland, 120-103.

"I'm just happy it wasn't eight [turnovers], like it was in Miami," said Lin. "I'm happy about one turnover, I think if I can keep it [to] three or less a game, that's my goal."

Carmelo Anthony scored 22 and Steve Novak nailed five three-pointers en route to 17 points off the bench for New York, which overcame a 17-point first-half deficit. The Knicks outscored the Cavs 71-42 in the second half.

Antawn Jamison had a double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds, while Kyrie Irving added 22 to go with seven assists for the Cavs, who have lost three straight games.

Trailing by 12 at the break, the Knicks used a 10-2 spurt to start the second half as the hosts pulled within 63-59 with 8:24 remaining in the third. Back- to-back layups from Lin and Amare Stoudemire capped the flurry.

"We just didn't do a good job of taking care of the ball, and we didn't do a good job of attacking," said Cavaliers head coach Byron Scott. "If they're going to be agressive like that, you have to be agressive back, and I didn't think we were."

Later in the third, back-to-back triples from Novak capped an 8-0 surge, giving the Knicks their first lead of the contest, 75-74, late in the frame.

New York took an 82-80 advantage into the fourth.

Novak hit two more treys during a 15-4 burst as the Knicks took a 97-84 lead with 6:52 to play.

The Knicks led by as many as 20 points down the stretch, cruising to the easy win.

The Knicks missed nine of their first 11 shots as the Cavs took a 15-7 advantage midway through the opening quarter. Cleveland led, 31-24, after one. Jamison netted 12 first-quarter points to pace the Cavs.

Jamison's triple from the left corner gave Cleveland its largest lead of 17, 59-42, late in the second before taking a 61-49 margin into the locker room. Cleveland shot 53.7 percent from the field in the half.

Game Notes

The Knicks recorded 30 assists on 43 made field goals...New York got 50 points from its bench and 68 points in the paint...The Knicks had six double-digit scorers...Tyson Chandler had 13 points and 15 boards for New York...The Knicks went 10-5 in February, their first 10-win February since going 10-3 in the 1996-97 campaign.