NEW YORK _ Jeff Hornacek's assessment of the Nets was complimentary, and tinged with the slightest bit of envy.
"There's no pressure on them whatsoever so they're just letting it go," he said before the game Wednesday night. "They're playing to win and they're not playing not to lose. They look like they're having fun."
Fun. A novel concept that seemed so completely foreign to the Knicks when they entered the game. But by the time the final buzzer blew on the Knicks' rollicking, 110-96 comeback win over the Nets, it certainly seemed like Carmelo Anthony and company may have learned a thing or two from the Nets' strategy.
After a stagnant, tentative first half, the Knicks, led by Anthony, exploded in the second, erasing a 14-point lead and finally invigorating a Madison Square Garden crowd that seemed to both fear and expect the worst. Anthony scored 14 of his 22 points in the final 3:46 of the third quarter, giving the Knicks a 72-71 lead going into the fourth quarter. This, after he was held scoreless for the first 16:33 of the game.
Anthony's reverse layup with 4:57 left in the third drew the Knicks within seven and then ... he just kept going. Anthony scored the Knicks' next 12 points after that in a display so dominating, it looked like it was ripped straight from the annals of Phil Jackson's most pleasant dreams.
"When you get momentum from a guy that's red hot making tough shots, the other guys can kind of sit back," Hornacek said. "Melo making the shots also allowed us to set our defense."
After that, it was as if the Knicks _ 2-4 entering the game _ were reminded what their players were capable of. Kristaps Porzingis scored 11 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter. Derrick Rose, who didn't play in the fourth, scored 14 points with four assists.
The Knicks got a major boost off the bench from backup point guard Brandon Jennings, who had 11 assists in 27 minutes, and backup big man Willy Hernangomez, who had 14 points in 15 minutes.
The Nets' Justin Hamilton, who nailed a career-high five 3s, scored 21, as did Brook Lopez. They were the only Nets in double figures.
The Knicks _ working now with their new defensive coach, Kurt Rambis _ were able to bounce back from early defensive missteps to outscore the Nets 60-41 in the second half. It certainly didn't seem headed in that direction and a loss here _ to a team with no expectations and currently no experienced starting point guard _ would have been particularly demoralizing. Hornacek noted before the game that "everyone thinks the sky is falling," and there was certainly an air of despondency in the first quarter.
Joe Harris' three with 6:45 left in the quarter gave the Nets (3-5) a 14-12 lead and ignited an 11-0 run, capped by Hamilton's trey with 4:10 to go. The Nets shot 5-for-11 from downtown in the quarter and 50 percent from the floor _ generally outhustling and outplaying their big brother at every turn.
It was fun for the Nets while it lasted, but as the Knicks would attest, there's nothing more fun than winning.
