NEW YORK -- Make that back-to-back blowouts, and at least one Knick swears he saw it coming.
[b]College Tom Brady Jersey[/b] . "Yeah, I knew it was going to eventually happen. Im glad that it did," point guard Raymond Felton said. "It was a good night to happen in Brooklyn, then we came back tonight and showed it wasnt a fluke. Thats what a lot of people were trying to say. We came out tonight to really prove that." They sure did, once again looking more like a juggernaut than a joke. Carmelo Anthony had 20 points and 11 rebounds, and New York snapped a seven-game home losing streak by beating the Orlando Magic 121-83 on Friday night for its first victory at Madison Square Garden since October. "We got tired of losing. Whether we figured everything out in two games, thats yet to come, but well take these two wins," Anthony said. Andrea Bargnani and J.R. Smith each added 17 points for the Knicks, who followed their 113-83 rout of Brooklyn on Thursday with an even more powerful performance, giving them consecutive victories for the first time this season after a nine-game losing streak. "At some point it was going to get unleashed," Felton said. "Brooklyn was just the team that got the first wrath of it, so everybody else is going to have to feel it later on, too." The Knicks hadnt won at home since beating Milwaukee in their season opener on Oct. 30. The seven-game skid had matched the longest in franchise history, set during the 2007-08 season. They ended it emphatically, just missing the biggest victory in the NBA this season, the Clippers 39-point rout of Chicago on Nov. 24, according to STATS. "I think the results of their game in Brooklyn carried over to this game," Orlando coach Jacque Vaughn said. "They shot the ball extremely well like they did in Brooklyn, so there you have an NBA game for you." The Knicks made a season-best 17 3-pointers -- a night after hitting 16 -- and turned it into another easy night for Anthony, who took only 10 shots one night after attempting only 12. "I wanted to try to do something a little different to see if it worked," he said. "Me scoring 30 wasnt working." New York moved ahead of the Nets and out of last place. Despite their struggles, the Knicks (5-13) are only 2 1/2 games behind first-place Boston in the pathetic Atlantic Division, and can move even closer when they host the Celtics on Sunday afternoon. Arron Afflalo scored 20 points for the Magic, who dropped their fourth straight. Victor Oladipo added 17 points and nine rebounds. Amare Stoudemire sat out for the Knicks, still not ready to play on back-to-back nights after off-season knee surgery. No matter, as Metta World Peace picked up the extra minutes and scored 12 points. Tim Hardaway Jr. finished with 15 and Felton had 14. The Knicks broke it open by outscoring the Magic 30-15 in the third quarter to open a 20-point lead. The highlight came on a ferocious drive and dunk by Iman Shumpert. Orlando fell to 1-8 on the road, running out to a quick start but then getting run over from there. The Magic hit six of their first seven shots, including all three 3-pointers, to storm to a 15-5 lead. The Knicks started 2 for 12 but eventually got going and trailed just 31-28 after one. The Knicks answered with five 3-pointers in the first 4 minutes of the second quarter, going ahead 43-35, and took a 59-54 advantage into halftime. "They put us in tough situations," Orlando guard Jameer Nelson said. "We just have to recognize situations and get better at them so it (doesnt) happen again." Nelson was back for Orlando after missing three straight games with a sprained left foot, but leading rebounder Nik Vucevic missed his second in a row with a sprained left ankle. NOTES: The Knicks seven-game winning streak against Orlando is their longest active streak against an opponent. They have beaten Milwaukee six straight times. ... Shumpert finished with 10 points and every Knicks player scored.
[b]Tom Brady Jersey[/b] .com) - Klay Thompson is quickly proving he is worth every penny of his recently signed four-year contract extension.
[b]Signed Michael Jordan Jersey[/b] .com) - The Columbus Blue Jackets rewarded starting goaltender and pending restricted free agent Sergei Bobrovsky with a four-year contract extension on Friday.MINNEAPOLIS -- At the crack of the bat, San Diego Padres manager Bud Black didnt think centre fielder Alexi Amarista had a chance to get Eduardo Escobars screaming line drive. Step by blazing step, it didnt take Amarista long to give Black and the rest of his team some much-needed hope. Amarista made that game-saving catch in the bottom of the ninth inning and Seth Smith followed with a solo homer in the 10th to lift the Padres to a 5-4 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday. "Then I saw Alexis route, and youre sort of watching Alexi and watching the ball," Black said. "And then in flight, you think maybe." Amarista ran backward on a dead sprint and laid out for a brilliant diving catch of the drive with two on and two outs to keep the game tied. "When he hit it, I thought game over," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "We just watched their whole outfield move way in with two strikes, and he moved way in when that ball was hit, and Esco got a hold of it really nice, we thought he had no chance to catch that ball. But the young man ran it down, and it was a hell of a play." Smith had two hits and two RBIs. Joaquin Benoit picked up his fourth save in five tries and the Padres earned a split in the two-game series. Trevor Plouffe had a homer and three RBIs for the Twins. But All-Star closer Glen Perkins blew his fourth save in 32 chances this year. San Diego trailed 4-3 going into the ninth against Perkins, but Everth Cabrera tied the game with a sacrifice fly. The Padres earlier in the day hired Texas Rangers assistant GM A.J. Preller as the teams new general manager, two people with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because an official announcement had not been made. The speedy Amarista was a late-game defensive replacement, and what a move it was for Black. He raced a good 35 yards or more to track down Escobars hit and the Padres bench erupted when he hauled it in. Smith responded with a drive more than 400 feet off Anthony Swarzak (2-1) into the right-fiield stands for his 12th homer.
[b]College Michael Jordan Jersey[/b]. . "It was nice to win a game like that," Smith said. "Those are the games you need to win." Kevin Quackenbush (2-2) got the win. TRAINERS ROOM Padres: Yangervis Solarte came up hobbling in the sixth inning after sliding home to tie the game at 3. Solarte appeared to actually roll over a bat laying in his way as he made the slide. But he was able to finish the game at third base. Twins: Gardenhire said first baseman Joe Mauer and right-hander Ricky Nolasco both had successful debuts on their rehab stints with Class A Cedar Rapids on Tuesday night. Mauer (strained right oblique) was scheduled to play first base on Wednesday. If all goes well, Mauer will join the team in Houston next week. Gardenhire said Nolasco (elbow) "felt great" after throwing 51 pitches. He will make at least one more start before being activated. FOR STARTERS Padres right-hander Odrisamer Despaigne gave up four runs on eight hits with three walks and five strikeouts in 5 2-3 innings. It was his third straight outing allowing at least four runs and his third straight where he hasnt reached the seventh inning. "Hes been a little bit too up out over the plate for the most part," Black said. YONDER HEATS UP Alonso went 6 for 8 in the series to raise his average to .233. He was activated from the disabled list last week after dealing with right wrist tendinitis, and Black said he can see the difference. "Theres no soreness in his wrist," Black said. "His forearms, his hands, everything having to do with gripping the bat feels good. His timing is there. Hes one of the guys that we need to continue this hitting." UP NEXT Padres: San Diego is off on Thursday before opening a three-game series in Pittsburgh on Friday night. RHP Ian Kennedy (8-9, 3.59) will start the opener against Pirates RHP Vance Worley (4-1, 2.43). Twins: Minnesota starts a four-game series in Oakland on Thursday night. RHP Yohan Pino (1-3, 4.57) pitches for the Twins against newly acquired As LHP Jon Lester (11-7, 2.59). ' ' '
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