Courtney Lee knew what the Knicks needed to do against the Sixers.
"We've got to stop giving up our leads," he said before the game. "We've got to be able to sustain their runs and keep our composure and keep our distance from them."
For the third time this season, that didn't happen.
The Sixers rallied for a 105-102 win over the Knicks on Friday night at the Wells Fargo Center to snap their three-game skid.
The Knicks led by 11 points in the first quarter. The Sixers closed out the second on a 16-1 run to take a 10-point lead at halftime. The Knicks responded in the third by holding the Sixers to 16 points and reclaiming a two-point edge.
As in their first two meetings, this one came down to the wire. The Sixers and Knicks were tied at 98 apiece off a Dario Saric drive with 2:20 to go. So began the back and forth.
NBA
The Knicks took a 102-100 lead with a minute to play off a pair of Derrick Rose free throws before Saric came up big down the stretch.
The rookie got the Sixers back on top by drawing a foul on Kristaps Porzingis, finding Justin Anderson to take the lead and grabbing the rebound off the Carmelo Anthony go-ahead attempt. He then hit two free throws of his own with three seconds remaining to ice the win.
Courtney Lee missed the attempted tying at the buzzer.
Inside the box score
• Saric led the Sixers with 21 points, scoring 12 in the final 8:42 of the game. He recorded a double-double with 10 rebounds and added four assists (including this dish to Jahlil Okafor).
• Anderson quickly won over the crowd with his hustle play. He scored 19 points with five rebounds and two assists in 24 minutes.
• Okafor bounced back from his last game with 12 points and, more significantly, eight rebounds (six in the first half). He left the game with a rib contusion but did return.
• Robert Covington scored 16 points, with half coming at the line. He also had five blocks.
• Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot neared a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds.
• The Sixers held Anthony to 5 for 18 field goal shooting. He finished with 18 points, six rebounds and two assists. Anthony dropped 37 points in their last meeting.
• Lance Thomas led the Knicks with 21 points and seven rebounds.
• Rose scored 20 points, shooting 10 for 13 from the line.
Anderson vs. Anthony
Things got heated between Anderson and Anthony in the third quarter. Watch as they were assessed double technicals.
Harper makes debut
Justin Harper made his Sixers debut the same day he signed his 10-day contract. He went scoreless (0 for 1) with a rebound in five minutes. Brett Brown explained what the addition of Harper brings to the Sixers aside from stretching the floor.
"There's a big gap where Ersan (Ilyasova) left," Brown said. "We can make stuff up and play Robert at a four. I suppose I could do something and play Jahlil and Richaun (Holmes) and we move Richaun down, but the most immediate thing I feel subbing the group since Ersan's been gone is that Dario and Robert end up not playing as much together."
Up next
The Sixers have a quick turnaround as they host the Pistons Saturday night at 6 p.m.