National Basketball Association

Heat's biggest comeback of season comes at Knicks' expense

Published Feb. 10, 2015 3:47 a.m. ET

foxsports

For the Miami Heat, it was not more of the same.

For the New York Knicks, it was.

Chris Bosh scored 32 points, Mario Chalmers added 18 to lead a big effort from Miami's trio of point guards and the Heat rolled after halftime to win 109-95 on Monday night -- a double-blow for the Knicks, who lost yet another game and lost Carmelo Anthony in the fourth quarter with a recurrence of knee soreness.

"It was good to be on the other end of that at home," said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, whose team improved to just 9-15 in its own building this season and posted its biggest comeback win after trailing by 14 early. "It was a good second half. A lot of energy, and a lot of guys involved."

Chalmers, Norris Cole and Shabazz Napier combined to give Miami 35 points, 17 assists and only five turnovers from the guard spot, coming up big with Dwyane Wade still sidelined by his strained hamstring. Luol Deng scored 12 and Chris Andersen added 10 for Miami, plus had a nifty behind-the-back pass to set up Bosh for a basket as Miami pulled away.

"No matter what, as tough as it's been on this team this season so far, we always come to play," said Bosh, who also had six assists. "Guys want to win. Guys show up and compete, no matter what. That's what I've loved about this group."

Anthony scored 26 points for the Knicks, who became the first NBA team this season to be guaranteed of finishing with a sub-.500 record.

They have bigger problems.

Anthony left in the fourth quarter to get his knee re-taped, the team said, but never returned -- and in the locker room afterward, showed signs of frustration.

"It's the same thing," said Anthony, who has missed 12 games already -- and there's been speculation that with the Knicks out of the playoff picture this season, he will get shut down well before game No. 82. "It's very sore at this point."

Anthony said he's taking things day by day.

"I'm restricted," Anthony said. "I'm not getting that power, that bounce."

For a few minutes early on, that certainly wasn't the case.

He made his first five shots, four of them from 3-point range. Anthony's 14 first-quarter points matched a season high, the Knicks led by as many as 14 in the opening minutes and were up 32-23 when the period ended.

From there, Miami eventually found its groove.

Bosh came alive with 13 points in the second quarter as Miami got within four at the break, and the third quarter -- a big problem for the Heat all season -- helped the hosts take the lead, with Chalmers hitting a 3-pointer in the final seconds for a 77-74 edge going into the final 12 minutes.

Anthony's last basket came with 7:47 left, getting New York within 86-82. Miami then outscored the Knicks 19-6 over the next 5 minutes to make it a runaway.

"Defense," Andersen said. "We played it and played it together."

TIP-INS

Knicks: Miami Hurricanes coach Jim Larranaga was in the crowd to see his former point guard, the Knicks' Shane Larkin. ... New York was to wear white jerseys, with the Heat opting to wear "black tie" -- a nod to tuxedoes -- at home. But the Knicks forgot and played in their traditional blue road uniforms instead. ... New York needs to finish 12-18 to avoid having the worst single-season record in franchise history.

Heat: Wade and Bosh have played together in only 28 of Miami's 51 games. Spoelstra said it's unlikely that Wade will travel to Cleveland on Wednesday, and there's been no determination if Wade will play in Sunday's All-Star game. ... Hassan Whiteside had seven points and six rebounds in the third quarter.

HEAT VERSUS WORST

It was the second time in less than a week that the Heat played a team holding the NBA's worst record. Minnesota was 8-40 going into its victory over Miami on Wednesday; the Knicks came into Monday one game behind the Timberwolves in the overall league standings.

BARGNANI RETURNS

After missing 89 of New York's past 91 games going back to last season, former No. 1 overall pick Andrea Bargnani returned for the Knicks -- finishing with four points and two rebounds in nearly 14 minutes.