Rangers 4, Sabres 3: Not only did the Rangers exact some revenge for their defeat in last season's playoffs, but they improved their chances of qualifying for this postseason. Sean Avery broke a third-period tie and put the Rangers two points ahead of the Sabres in the race for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Jaromir Jagr, Brandon and Nigel Dawes also scored for the Rangers, who have picked up points in their last......

Pacers 103, Knicks 100: Remember in the 90s when these teams enjoyed one of the best rivalries in sports? Those were the days. In 2008, they're playing to see who can have the longest losing streak. The biggest loser: the Knicks. They have now lost seven straight, the same streak the Pacers brought into this game. Zach Randolph turned in an inspired effort of 26 points, but he and his teammates didn't appear motivated on......

Photograph of Sam Madison, left, Kevin Dockery, center, and R.W. McQuarters at the Knicks-Clippers game by Ed Betz/AP Clippers 103 Knicks 94: New York Giants Sam Madison, Kevin Dockery and R.W. McQuarters showed up for the game, which provided a great diversion from what happened on the floor. Leading 60-51 at halftime, the Knicks were blown away in the third quarter, getting outscored 28-14 as the Clippers cruised to the win. The Knicks actually......

Isiah Thomas thinks he deserves more time. Not that much more, just two weeks, but time to show he can turn this club around. Of course, he has had four years already, but at this point who is counting? Maybe Isiah noticed that the next two weeks contain six games, but only two of those teams currently have winning records. The two-week timeframe came up as Thomas was asked what he would do to a......

You know what makes the Pacers special? They actually had the brains to admit their mistake and fire Isiah. The Knicks haven’t figured that out and Monday’s 119-92 humiliation probably won’t change things. And it isn’t so much that they lost to the Pacers, it’s the way they did. They played a good first quarter, went cold in the second rallied to tie the game at 64 and then stopped competing. Zach Randolph had 26......

A's 5, Yankees 4: After all the work the Yankees did to outlast A's starter Rich Harden and hold the not-so-potent Oakland offense in check, Mariano Rivera gave up a three-run walk-off homer to Marco Scutaro (he's a former Met) and the Yankees lost a series in the Bay Area. They could have easily swept the three games, but a tough extra-inning loss Friday night and an even tougher loss Sunday made them settle......

Knicks 97, Cavaliers 93: Eddy Curry, who has shown the Knicks nothing over the past two weeks, scored 13 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter to help lead a comeback win over the Cavs. This may be a case of a day late and a dollar short, though. The Knicks remain two games behind the Nets for the final playoff spot, and they'll each play 12 more games. New York would also have......

Devils 3 Carolina 2: Local fans of all affiliations cheered on the Devils tonight as they came up with two goals in the third period to beat the Hurricanes. Martin Brodeur had another stellar game with 38 saves. Carolina’s loss leaves them with 78 points, tied with the Islanders and two ahead of the Rangers in the very tight Eastern Conference. The Devils moved to within two of Buffalo for the conference lead. Ottawa 5......

Knicks 102, Kings 97: Jamal Crawford scored eight points in the final 1 minute 7 seconds to lead New York over Sacramento in the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day matinee. Crawford's won some other games this sesaon, but should people go as far as David Lee in singing his praises? The second-year forward called Crawford the "one of the best in the NBA" at performing down the stretch. Not quite, but still a good......

It is getting impossible to root for the Knicks anymore. The franchise is completely lost, stuck over the salary cap for the rest of the decade and playing uninspired basketball. Now we learn that the head coach is running the team like a mob boss, ordering his players to take out opponents. These are the facts we know at this point. George Karl and Isiah Thomas do not get along at all. Karl is a......

-Raptors 90, Nets 78: Each team played without a star, but only the Nets played without energy. They missed Richard Jefferson and also, it seems, the ability to defend Toronto's T.J. Ford, who helped his team overcome the loss of center Chris Bosh. Vince Carter was -- surprise! -- booed when he touched the ball. He probably didn't let it get to his head, but he still was held in check during a 12-point performance.......

-Knicks 100, Heat 76: Eddy Curry's 5-for-5 shooting in the third quarter helped the Knicks outscore the Heat, 34-14, in the period and helped New York roll to its second straight win. It's the Knicks' first winning streak of the season, though Friday's win came over a decimated Heat team. The Knicks have won the two games by a combined 44 points, and they've called on a wide range of contributors. Jamal Crawford, who scored......

-Pacers 109, Knicks 95: Isiah Thomas will have enough problems this season without his team allowing opponents to shoot 64 percent from the field in the second half. Indiana did just that and ran away from the Knicks in the fourth quarter. Steve Francis fouled out again, but at least he contributed, scoring 25 points in 34 minutes before being disqualified. The Knicks are 1-2, and in their win, they blew a 19-point fourth-quarter lead......

Lawrence Frank must wonder why his team can't play their best basketball when they don't trail in this series. For the second time this series, the Nets coach saw his players respond from a loss, this time in a 97-88 win over the Pacers Saturday. Just as it appeared in the other win, the Nets' recipe for success included an efficient night from Vince Carter, a more involved Jason Kidd and a foul-ridden performance by......

Just as the Nets improved with the play of Vince Carter, so did the Pacers when Jermaine O'Neal woke up. With Indiana's big man not in foul trouble and a force inside, the Nets lost game three 107-95 Thursday and trail the four-of-seven series two games to one. O'Neal proved too tough to handle on offense (he scored 37 points) and on defense (he held Nenad Krstic to just nine points). Without foul trouble to......

If someone told Nets coach Lawrence Frank he could have the Indiana Pacers' best player in foul trouble all afternoon and force the Pacers to rely on a reserve point guard, he probably would have signed on the dotted line. Yet Jermaine O'Neal scored when it counted and Anthony Johnson, a former Net, hit two free throws in the final second of a 90-88 win over New Jersey. The Pacers lead the four-of-seven series 1-0.......

In case any doubt lingered about the Nets' lackluster effort during the season's last few games, New Jersey removed any doubt with a 90-83 loss to the Knicks at home. Of course, Lawrence Frank rested his stars to the point that the quartet of Vince Carter, Nenad Krstic, Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson totaled just 18 minutes. All belonged to Jefferson. Jacque Vaughn led the team with 15 points, and the not-even-trying Nets almost came......

After back-to-back collapses at home it was hard to see how things could get worse for the Knicks. Friday night they provided the answer, falling 122-111 to the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks had won only four games prior to beating the Knicks. The Knicks defense was absent all night allowing the Hawks to score 71 points in the first half and to shoot an astounding 63.2% from the field for the game; the highest......

So, on the cover of yesterday's NY Times sports section was this huge picture of New Jersey Nets small forward Richard Jefferson (RJ!) hugging point guard Zoran Planinic after a third quarter shot against the Utah Jazz, and we thought to ourselves, "This is some hug...not that there's anything wrong with that." But these are exciting times for Nets, as exciting as being on top of the Atlantic Division five games into the season can......

This afternoon, the Knicks will announce the hiring of NBA vagabond Larry Brown as the new coach of the Knicks. The contract pays Brown around $10 million per season. Brown is 64 and is already a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame. He has coached teams to both an NCAA title and an NBA championship, and is widely regarded (along with Phil Jackson) as the NBA's top coach. While the move was sudden, nothing......

John Starks, New York Knicks...

7 points in 22 seconds. That pretty much sums up the Nets' night in a 90-86 loss to the Pacers on Wednesday. 39 year-old Reggie Miller continued his 2nd half surge with 22 points and some heroic shots (including a 4-point play) to clinch a playoff spot for Indiana and push the Nets 1.5 games out of the Eastern Conference race with just 5 games to play. The Nets actually led by 11 at halftime......

While the Knicks lost last night's game by 18 points, they wake up with a real sense of relief this morning. Reggie Miller, the skinny, gawky perennial clutch shooter for the Indiana Pacers, has played his final game at MSG. While Reggie had a rough shooting night (13 points), teammate and fan-puncher Stephen Jackson picked up the slack with 33 points to lead Indiana to a win. Miller was booed during introductions, but the crowd......

It was a terrible night for fans of New York hoops. Even Isiah Thomas couldn't buy a piece of good basketball news. The Nets suffered a severe blow to their comeback hopes when it was announced yesterday that Richard Jefferson will be out with an injury for the remainder of the season. Jefferson ruptured ligaments in his left wrist, which requires surgery followed by four months of time in a cast or in physical therapy.......

Further proof that it is the Warriors, and not the Clippers, that are the NBA's most hapless franchise. Golden State has agreed in principle to deal prized free agent center Erick Dampier to the Knicks for back ups Nazr Mohammed and Othella Harrington. However, the deal is not complete yet. Dampier must agree to a sign and trade deal to make it to the Big Apple, but first he is meeting with the Atlanta Hawks......

Last night, the Nets lost the 7th and deciding game to the Pistons in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Why did we all know this would happen? Maybe because the Nets were blown out in their first two games and had to return to the scene of the crime? Or was it the fact that Jason Kidd was held scoreless in the playoffs for the first time in his career because of his back and......

Proving that nothing in New York is cheap, a recent study by Sportsbusinessnews.com confirmed that the New York Knickerbockers were officially the worst bargain in the league this season. When you divide the Knicks $94,395,091 payroll (highest in the league) by 39, the number of W’s they notched this season, the results show that each victory cost owner James Dolan $2,420,387. Need proof that shrewd cap mangement can put you in position to win a......