DALLAS -- Carmelo Anthony gave the Knicks an early lead and his New York teammates made it stand up. Anthony scored 15 of his 19 points in the first quarter to lead five Knicks -- three of them reserves -- in double figures and New York held off a late rally to defeat the Dallas Mavericks 92-80 Sunday night. New York led by as many as 19 points and held on when the Mavericks got within six in the last minute and a half to finish 2-1 on a four-day trip through Texas. "Its been a successful trip," Knicks coach Mike Woodson said. "We lose a two-point game in Houston in which we had an opportunity to win. We played great in San Antonio. And to come in here and beat Dallas, whos playing well at home and playing well this season, it should be a boost for our team." Kenyon Martin scored a season-high 14 points, starter Andrea Bargnani had in 13, Amare Stoudemire added 11 and Tim Hardaway scored eight of his 10 in the fourth quarter. In addition, Beno Udrih had eight assists, Iman Shumpert scored seven points in the last 2 minutes and J.R. Smith had seven points and seven rebounds. "I thought our bench was fantastic, and we are going to need our bench to play like they played tonight," Woodson said. Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle agreed. "Everybody on their team played well. Name a guy that didnt." Dirk Nowitzki had 18 points and nine rebounds for the Mavericks, who lost their fourth consecutive home game. Their previous low score had been 87 points twice this season. The Knicks had allowed a season-low 78 in a victory at Chicago on Dec. 11. Anthony scored six points during a 12-0 run in the first that gave the Knicks a 24-13 lead. He also led New York with four rebounds, three assists and two steals in the quarter. He finished with seven rebounds, five assists, three steals and a blocked shot. After that, Dallas Shawn Marion picked up his man-to-man defence on Anthony. He didnt score in the second quarter, but the Knicks still outscored the Mavericks 23-18 for a 52-35 halftime lead. Bargnani had seven points in the second. "I sprained my (right) ankle on the second play of the game," Marion said, "and I hurt my Achilles a little bit. "I decided I had to make it hard for (Anthony). I was able to help the team after that." In the third quarter, Martin scored six points in a 1:13 span that gave New York a 58-39 lead. He returned after missing Fridays game at Houston because of a sore left ankle. "It was a little tender," Martin said, "but I knew Tyson (Chandler) was under the weather. At that point, it was mind over matter." Martin filled in after starting centre Chandler left because of illness, and had 10 of the Knicks 15 points in the quarter. "I didnt even know if Kenyon was going to play tonight," Woodson said. "We needed all of Kenyon tonight to carry this win." The Mavericks had shot 36 per cent (13 for 36) from the field in the first half and were 0 for 8 on 3-pointers. Dallas missed 8 of 17 free throws, including four by Nowitzki. He was 3 for 7 from the field and 5 for 9 from the foul line to finish with 11 points and seven rebounds in the half. The 35 points were the Mavericks fewest in the first half this season. The Hawks held them to 34 in the second half of an 88-87 loss at Atlanta Nov. 29. The Mavericks rallied from the 19-point deficit at 58-39 with an 18-7 run that reduced New Yorks lead to eight. That run followed a blistering timeout message from Carlisle. "We didnt play well defensively. We made a very poor showing in the first half. I didnt have them ready. I will take the blame," Carlisle said. The third quarter ended 67-57. Dallas pulled within six at 84-78 with 1:33 to play on Monta Ellis jump shot. Shumpert came back with a 3-pointer. "Melo found me when I was open," Shumpert said. "I think they just forgot about me, left me over there. When youre wide open, you just got to knock it down." It was Shumperts only successful 3-pointer in three attempts against Dallas, but he was 13 for 17 (76 per cent) in the three Texas games. For Dallas, Ellis and Vince Carter scored 13 points, Jose Calderon had 12 and DeJuan Blair added 11. "They got hot early, and we didnt really start till late," Mavericks rookie guard Shane Larkin said. "Late in the game, we didnt really have any legs." NOTES: Chandler left because of an upper respiratory illness after playing the first 4:25. . Metta World Peace was not with the Knicks for the fourth consecutive game. He has said he would undergo platelet-rich plasma therapy Monday in New York. New York coach Mike Woodson said, "Well know more when we get back." . This was just the fourth time the Knicks have won as many as two games in 14 three-game trips to Texas. . Carter played in his 1,100th NBA game. . Nowitzki had one steal, leaving him one short of 1,000 for his career. . Center Samuel Dalembert was benched for one game because he was late for practice Saturday. He said he hasnt been able to sleep at night, and "Im taking steps to make sure that doesnt happen again." Air Max 95 China Wholesale . The Nuggets leading scorer, Lawson is characterized as day to day by the team. Hes averaging 17.9 points and 8.9 assists. Lawson suffered the injury late in Denvers win Sunday at Sacramento. Wholesale Air Max 95 . But that changed when he committed a five-minute major penalty and helped pave the way for a comeback by the Philadelphia Flyers. Vincent Lecavalier scored at 2:45 of overtime and the Flyers rallied from a two-goal deficit for a 5-4 victory on Sunday. http://www.cheapairmax95china.com/.A. remained bitter for Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers on the long flight back home to New York. Cheap Air Max 95 China . Kyle Denbrook, a soccer player from Saint Marys University, took the CIS male athlete of the week honour. Stanley, a fourth-year business administration student from Charlottetown, scored both goals in a 2-0 win over Dalhousie on Friday and tallied again in a 1-0 win over Saint Marys on Sunday. Buy Air Max 95 China . Jannero Pargo scored 14 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter to help the Charlotte Bobcats erase a 21-point deficit and rally for an 83-76 preseason victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night.MELBOURNE, Australia - Victoria Azarenka is packing her bags and leaving the Australian Open far earlier than years past, but the two-time former champion sure had fun while she was here.For the Belarussian, who is putting forth a more carefree image these days, this might be just as important as winning.Unseeded after an injury-marred season, Azarenka had the toughest draw of any of the top female contenders at Melbourne Park, yet she moved through three rounds with ease, not dropping a set to Sloane Stephens, Caroline Wozniacki or Barbora Zahlavova Strycova.On Monday, though, her run came to an end against 2014 finalist, Dominika Cibulkova, in a match filled with extended rallies, momentum shifts and impressive shot-making. The two women combined for 76 winners.It was Azarenkas earliest exit from the Australian Open since 2011, but rather than be disappointed, she looked at the upside.I take it as progress. I think there are a lot of the positive things to take from here, she said. Overall, I can be pretty happy.Its been her mantra for the whole tournament. In years past, Azarenka hasnt seemed to fully enjoy her time at the Australian Open, despite her success. This year felt different — she seemed to buy into the tournaments informal Happy Slam nickname.Forget the twirls — Azarenka put on impromptu dance performances on the court after her matches. She playfully scolded the crowds for calling her Vicky instead of Vika or Victoria when they cheered her on. And she flirted with Australian teen sensation Nick Kyrgios on Twitter — she asked how she could learn to serve as big as him, and he responded, private lessons, of course!!Even her encounters with the media, which used to cause her to bristle in the past, were lighthearted.ddddddddddddThe topic of conversation routinely veered from tennis to other less weighty subjects, such as Vegemite and her multi-colored leggings.Theres not many players who can pull that off, she said after her third-round win over Zahlavova Strycova as she raised her leg to show off her white, purple and green leggings. What do you think about them?Azarenka also opened up about the pressures she felt in the past to publicly present a more packaged, less authentic version of herself.This came to a head at the Australian Open two years ago when she struggled to explain herself and looked overwhelmed when repeatedly questioned about a medical time-out she took at a critical time in her semifinal against Stephens. The controversy hung over her final against Li Na, with some in the crowd booing her and mimicking her high-pitched grunting sounds.Azarenka maintains she was legitimately hurt and felt she was unfairly criticized at the time.Now, she says, she has learned the importance of being true to herself, even if not everybody likes her.I dont think Ive changed as a person. I think I grew as a person. I think Im able to speak my thoughts more freely, which before I think I was holding back and really was trying to fit into some kind of image that a lot of people, a lot of players do, she said.Im just being me. I say what I want to say. I laugh when I want to laugh. I play how I want to play. I grunt when I want to grunt. ' ' '