The Knicks hadn't won a division title in almost two decades, hadn't finished atop the Atlantic since Carmelo Anthony was 10 years old. The wait seemed interminable — and thanks to Anthony's dominance and last night's 120-99 thrashing of the Wizards, it's finally over.
Anthony poured in a game-high 36 points and the Knicks tied a club-record with 20 3-pointers to run their winning streak to 13 games and claim their first division crown since 1994 — and the right to wear the T-shirts that hung in their lockers afterwards: "Can't Stop NY Knicks. 2013 Division Champions."
Wenzelberg
THAT'S A WRAP: Carmelo Anthony, who scored 36 points in 31 minutes, likes what he sees from the bench during the fourth quarter as the Knicks rolled to their 13th straight win and their first division title in 19 years.
"It means a lot. It means we're headed in the right direction,'' coach Mike Woodson said. "When you set goals and you accomplish them, it means a lot to your franchise and your fans.''
It's not the ultimate goal — that would be the shiny gold trophies plastered above those lockers, like championship carrots dangling in front of them. But don't try to tell them it's meaningless — not after this long a wait. Just call it the latest and biggest step on a journey they hope ends in June with a parade.
"It was our No. 1 goal," said J.R. Smith, one of six Knicks in double figures with 17 points. "Coming into camp, we kept talking about it, and the coaching staff put it in our minds we can do it and we will. Fortunately we did. It's a great thing to achieve one of our main goals; now we just have to go get that gold ball. We still have so much to prove not only to everybody else but to ourselves. We want to be a great team.''
The Knicks (51-26) took a step toward that with their fifth outright division crown — they tied the Celtics in 1991-92 but lost the tiebreaker for playoff seeding — and first since 1994. Their winning streak is the third-best in club history, and they did it despite losing yet another big man.
Kenyon Martin, who started at center despite being questionable with a knee injury, sprained his left ankle with 10:28 left in the blowout. They had already rested Tyson Chandler (neck), and have been without Amar'e Stoudemire, Kurt Thomas and Marcus Camby. But they had Anthony and a rain of 3s; it was enough.
Anthony had his fifth straight game with at least 35 points to match Bernard King's Knicks record. He had 21 points in the third quarter alone, when the Knicks outscored the woebegone Wizards 37-28.
"Coming out of halftime we huddled and I said, 'Let's go get this game over with. Let's go get our division title, let's not play around with it,' '' said Anthony, who added eight boards and six assists.
"There's no reason not to have a smile on our face. We accomplished one of our goals [from training] camp. It's a stepping stone for us. We took care of the division. Now it's about finishing out strong and trying to make a push in the playoffs.''
The Knicks (51-26) lead Indiana for the No. 2 seed in the East by 2 ½ games, with five games left. The Knicks lost the season series and the tiebreaker to the Pacers, but they and Anthony are in their best form of the season.
"I know what he was thinking; he was thinking about winning the division tonight. That's how he played in the third quarter,'' Woodson said. "He's been beautiful to watch all season, because he's been doing it on both ends of the floor. Your best player has to make guys better, and the way he's playing he's doing that.''
Iman Shumert scored 18, Chris Copeland had 17 and Raymond Felton added 10 points and eight assists. The Knicks shot 9-of-12 from 3-point range in the first quarter and 20-of-36 for the night, leading by as much as 71-49 in the third before coasting.
brian.lewis@nypost.com
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