The New York Knicks Big Three put the team on their back to push the home team to victory in a 104-97 win over the defending champion Dallas Mavericks.
The Big Three? Yes. Jeremy Lin, Steve Novak and J.R. Smith.
Three players that were relative after-thoughts just a month ago served as integral cogs in the victory for the Knicks. Jeremy Lin put up an all-world line of 28 points and 14 assists, to go along with 5 steals and 4 rebounds to lead the Knicks in scoring. Steve Novak rained in 4 three-pointers, including one made three that followed up with a "discount double-check" move, to finish with 14 points. J.R. Smith put in three three-pointers as well in his first game back in the NBA to finish with 15 points.
The Mavericks wasted a huge effort from Dirk Nowitzki, as his 34 points on 11-of-20 shooting led all scorers in the game. Shawn Marion and Jason Terry were the only other players to score in double figures for the Mavericks, scoring 14 and 13 points, respectively.
Dallas will have to forget about this loss as they hit the road to Massachusetts to face the Boston Celtics on Monday night at 8:00 pm.
For more on the Mavericks go visit Mavs Moneyball and for all things related to the Knicks go check out Posting and Toasting, plus SB Nation New York. For more on the NBA, check out the SB Nation NBA hub page.