Knicks slam Celtics

Eddy Curry had 21 points and 10 rebounds and while Quentin Richardson netted 17 points and also pulled down six boards for the Knicks, who snapped a three- game losing streak and revenged a 122-118 loss on Saturday. David Lee fell just short of a triple-double with 11 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists off the bench.

Wally Szczerbiak chipped in 16 points while Paul Pierce added 12 for the Celtics, who have lost two in a row.

The Knicks began to pull away in the third quarter, as they began the frame with a 15-6 run, capped by Francis’s three-pointer, for a 67-53 advantage.

After a three-point play from Pierce cut the lead to 11, 67-56, New York closed the stanza with a 14-5 spurt, including seven points from Francis, pushing the margin to 81-61 heading into the fourth quarter.

Curry’s free throw with 8:41 left gave the Knicks an 88-68 lead, and the Celtics never cut the lead to less than 20 after that.

The Celtics led 25-23 after the opening 12 minutes, but the Knicks outscored Boston 29-22 in the second for a 52-47 halftime margin.

Game Notes

New York connected on 50 percent of its shots while Boston shot 38.2 percent from the floor, including 4-of-21 from long distance...The Knicks dominated the paint, outscoring the Celtics, 48-26, and winning the rebounding battle, 48-30...New York has won four of the last seven meetings in Boston...Channing Frye scored 13 points while Nate Robinson ended with 11 for the Knicks.