NBA Game Summary - New York at Atlanta

Atlanta, GA (Basketball News) - Stephon Marbury scored 10 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter to help the New York Knicks escape Atlanta with a 96-94 victory over the Hawks at Philips Arena.

Marbury finished 4-of-5 from behind the arc in the contest, including 2-of-2 in the final period, and hit nine of his 14 shots attempts in the game. Keith Van Horn added 18 points and Allan Houston chipped in 17 for the Knicks, who have won five of their last six. New York also improved to 4-1 under new head coach Lenny Wilkens.

Shareef Abdur-Rahim finished with a game-high 25 points in the losing effort, as the Hawks lost for just the third time in seven home tilts. Stephen Jackson had 19 points and Jason Terry 17 in the losing effort.

Marbury hit several clutch shots down the stretch, but none were bigger than his three-pointer that caromed off the glass and in with 30.6 remaining in the contest, giving New York a 92-89 lead.

Terry then hit a runner in the lane that allowed Atlanta to close within one, but Anfernee Hardaway answered for New York with two free throws to make it a three-point game once again.

With a chance to tie, however, Terry missed a wide-open three-pointer from the left corner. Two free throws on the other end by Kurt Thomas put the game away and rendered Abdur-Rahim’s three-point basket with under a second to play irrelevant.

New York shot 52 percent in the contest, hitting an impressive 9-of-13 from beyond the arc. Contrary to the Knicks’ solid long-range shooting, Atlanta converted just 4-of-17 three-point attempts in the game.

Houston and the Knicks shot the ball extremely well in the first quarter, helping New York grab a 29-24 lead. Houston hit 4-of-5 shots in the period while the Knicks, as a team, converted on 11-of-18 attempts.

New York extended its lead to as many as 11 points at 45-34 after Frank Williams drained a three-pointer from the left corner with 6:56 remaining in the first half.

The Hawks, though, caught up before the opening 24 minutes came to a conclusion. A 17-6 run, highlighted by six points from Jackson, allowed Atlanta to pull even at 51-51 with just under two minutes remaining in the first half.

The Knicks still went into the locker room holding a one-point advantage at 54-53. After three quarters of play New York still clung to its one-point advantage at 75-74.