ATLANTA – Paul Millsap made the decisive basket in a four-overtime game that lasted almost four hours and proclaimed it to be great fun that he never wants to experience again.
Millsap had a season-high 37 points, including the go-ahead layup with 27 seconds remaining in the fourth OT, and the Atlanta Hawks overcame Carmelo Anthony’s season-high 45 points to outlast the short-handed New York Knicks, 142-139, on Sunday.
Millsap logged 60 minutes, which were especially taxing due to his time defending Anthony.
“There was no chance I was coming out,” Millsap said.
Millsap had 19 rebounds, setting another season high, and seven assists.
“That was fun,” Millsap said. “I don’t want to do that again ever, but it was fun.”
Asked to summarize the game, he said, “I don’t even remember.”
The Knicks’ first four-overtime game in 66 years included five players, including Anthony and Atlanta’s Dwight Howard, fouling out.
Anthony scored the tying baskets at the end of regulation and the first overtime period, before fouling out with 12.9 seconds remaining in the second overtime.
Anthony said it was “difficult” to watch the last two extra periods.
“Those are the overtimes where you’ve got to dig deep,” Anthony said. “You’re exhausted, you have to find something from somewhere. But to not be out there in that last overtime was a little difficult to watch. Especially knowing the flow of the game. That was a moment I wanted to be out there.”
Meanwhile, Seth Curry scored a career-high 24 points and nailed a key layup with 17.3 seconds to play Sunday as the Dallas Mavericks shocked the Spurs 105-101 to halt their 12-game losing streak in San Antonio.
In other results, Cleveland blasted Oklahoma, 107-91; Indiana routed Houston, 120-101; Washington trounced New Orleans, 107-94; Orlando nipped Toronto, 114-113; Chicago ripped Philadelphia, 121-108; and Golden State edged Portland, 113-111.Back in Atlanta, the Knicks also had starters Kristaps Porzingis and Joakim Noah foul out. New York still found ways to match the scoring from Millsap and Kent Bazemore, who had 24 points, including the Hawks’ first eight points in the fourth overtime.