Knicks Endure Tough Road Trip

It's been nearly a month since the New York Knicks won in Toronto on Valentine's Day. They've been on the short end of all of their four road contests since then, including three games earlier this week.

Sunday's game saw the Knicks take a tough overtime loss to the Boston Celtics. Boston surged to a lead in the third period after a hard-fought first half, but the Knicks battled back to tie the game in the final minutes of regulation. Unfortunately, they couldn't get any offense going in overtime and lost to the Celtics, 115-111.

Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo made history with a triple-double, becoming just the third player ever to record 20 assists and 17 rebounds in an NBA game. Paul Pierce led all scorers with 34 points; Carmelo Anthony paced the Knicks with 25.

Tuesday's contest was another tough one for Knicks fans, as they lost 95-85 in Dallas. Midway through the second half, the game appeared headed for a Mavericks blowout, but the Knicks weren't prepared to go down quite so easily. A 15-0 run at the beginning of the fourth quarter erased the deficit and gave New York a brief 78-77 lead.

That run proved to be insufficient, though, as Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavs to their own 14-0 run and the victory. Nowitzki scored 24 of his game-high 28 points in the second half; Amar'e Stoudemire led the Knicks with 26 points.

Wednesday's game in San Antonio ended in another Knicks loss, despite strong statistical performances from Anthony and point guard Jeremy Lin. Spurs point guard Tony Parker outmatched his opposite number, leading all scorers with 32 points.

The final score was 118-105, and in truth the game was not even that close. San Antonio took a 20-point lead into the fourth quarter that the Knicks never seriously challenged.

New York fans hope their team can break its four-game road losing streak tonight in Milwaukee. The Knicks will return to Madison Square Garden for Sunday night's game against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Islanders Split First Two Against Devils

Hosting the New Jersey Devils Sunday night, the New York Islanders took a 1-0 victory on the strength of Anders Nilsson's 24-save shutout.

Kyle Okposo's goal in the second period gave the Isles the win and their first two-game winning streak in more than a month. Nilsson, who was goalie of the month for February in the AHL, earned the first win of his NHL career.

Unfortunately, Thursday's rematch in New Jersey featured much less defensive success for the Islanders. With a goal in each period, Ilya Kovalchuk led the Devils to a 5-1 victory.

Patrik Elias and David Clarkson added single goals for the Devils. Andrew MacDonald contributed New York's only goal of the game.

The Islanders will host the final contest of the rare three-game set Saturday night, then head on the road Sunday to face the rival New York Rangers one last time.

Rangers Defeat Bruins, Lose Two Straight

Thanks to Derek Stepan and Marian Gaborik, the New York Rangers briefly took the lead in the NHL standings Sunday.

It was a back-and-forth affair that saw the Rangers enter the third period tied at. Gaborik's goal gave New York a brief 3-2 lead, but Boston's David Krejci tied the game.

Just 39 seconds later, Stepan drilled the game-winning shot to give the Rangers a 4-3 win.

Things weren't as rosy on the road during the week, as the Rangers could only muster one goal while giving up four apiece to Ottawa and New Jersey.

The Rangers will next travel to Chicago before hosting the Islanders Sunday night.