Knicks at Nets
The New York Knicks will try to gain a split of their four-game road trip when they visit the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday. After beginning the trek with a win at Orlando, the Knicks have suffered double-digit losses to Milwaukee and Detroit, falling 112-92 to the Pistons on Saturday as star forward Carmelo Anthony continued to struggle.
Anthony scored 13 points - 10 below his average on the campaign - while attempting nine shots, which was just one more than his season low. New York has lost four of five overall and entered Saturday night six games out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Nets finished an eight-game road trip at 2-6 following a 105-96 loss at Dallas on Friday. Leading scorer Brook Lopez missed the contest with an ankle injury, but coach Kenny Atkinson indicated his center will not miss much time.
TV: 6 p.m. ET, MSG (New York), YES (Brooklyn)
ABOUT THE KNICKS (26-40): Anthony entered the game against Detroit averaging nearly 20 shots, but he has attempted a total of 34 over his last three games as he continues to cede more opportunities to Kristaps Porzingis. The 7-3 Latvian scored 18 points Saturday while taking seven more shots than Anthony, who also had fewer attempts than three others. Anthony is averaging 18.5 points while shooting 34.1 percent in two meetings with the Nets this season.
ABOUT THE NETS (11-53): Rookie Isaiah Whitehead erupted for a personal-best 24 points off the bench in Friday's setback, while the team's five starters combined for 36 on 12-of-32 shooting. "I just think we hit a wall as a team, but I'm proud of the guys for their effort tonight," guard Jeremy Lin told reporters. "I think everyone in here, probably everyone who has been on this road trip, is feeling it a little bit." Lin scored at least 16 points in each of the final four games of the trip as his minutes continue to increase in the wake of a hamstring injury.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. New York is 3-9 in the second half of back-to-back sets, but it has won two in a row in such situations.
2. Anthony needs five points to become the seventh player to score 10,000 for the Knicks.
3. The teams conclude their four-game season series Thursday at Madison Square Garden, after which the Knicks go on the road for four contests.