MARK BLINCH/REUTERS
Kenyon Martin throws down a dunk as he finishes the game with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
TORONTO â€" Kenyon Martin was unemployed last month and just waiting for a phone call from a playoff bound team needing a veteran rebounder and defender. That call finally came from the Knicks and it may have been the smartest decision the club has made all season.
With a Knicks front line decimated by injury, Martin has emerged as more than just a temp worker. He’s become an indispensable part of the team. The Knicks clinched a playoff berth for the third straight season as Martin was nearly perfect and Carmelo Anthony unstoppable at times as the Knicks defeated the Toronto Raptors 99-94.
Martin finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds and made his first nine shots before missing his last. Anthony played 43 minutes and scored 37 points on 31 shots including 10 in the final period as the Knicks held off the Raptors, who will visit the Garden Saturday.
Toronto could be without Rudy Gay, who suffered a back injury in the first half and played just 14 minutes. The Raptors, though, made it a game with Alan Anderson scoring 28 of his 35 points in the second half. The back-up guard made 11 of 18 shots. DeMar DeRozan added 18 as the Raptors fell to 26-43, including two wins over the Knicks.
Mike Woodson’s club improved to 41-26 and has won three straight following a four-game losing streak. J.R. Smith added 14 points while Marcus Camby, who turned 39 on Friday, had five rebounds and Jason Kidd, who turns 40 on Saturday, scored eight points with five rebounds.
Anderson scored 20 third quarter points as the Raptors, who trailed by 15, closed to within four. But Anthony’s jumper at the buzzer and Smith’s lay-up to open the fourth pushed the lead back to eight.
For the third straight game, Woodson used a lineup featuring Pablo Prigioni at point guard which allowed him to use Smith and Kidd off the bench. Martin was the revelation, taking and making high percentage shots. His play afforded Woodson the chance to limit Camby’s minutes, especially with Tyson Chandler, Kurt Thomas, Amar’e Stoudemire and Rasheed Wallace all injured and remaining back in the States.
Woodson’s plan was to limit Anthony’s minutes as well but with the Knicks unable to pull away, Anthony played the entire second half. Toronto closed to within 84-82 with 6:17 remaining when Anthony scored in the post and drew a foul on Anderson. Felton then set up Martin for a dunk and lay-up on consecutive possessions and when Felton hit a long three with 3:58 remaining the Knicks lead was 94-84.
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