Knicks 111, Bobcats 102: J.R. Smith scored a season-high 37 points off the bench - his third straight 30-point game - to power visiting New York to its seventh consecutive victory.

Carmelo Anthony added 32 points and 11 rebounds for the Knicks, who for the second straight game built a 30-point lead before surviving a furious fourth-quarter comeback.

Gerald Henderson tied his career high with 35 points to pace Charlotte, which trailed by 20 points with 7 1/2 minutes to play but cut the deficit to seven with two minutes left before dropping its fifth straight meeting in the series.

New York put on a torrid shooting display in the early going, hitting 12 of its first 16 shots overall and 5-of-6 from 3-point range to bolt to a 32-13 lead en route to a 38-20 edge after the opening quarter.

Smith scored 14 of his 23 first-half points in the second quarter as the Knicks went ahead by 30 and carried a 69-47 lead into the break. The Bobcats put a scare into New York with an 8-0 burst to cut the deficit to 102-95 with 2:02 to go but they could not get any closer.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Smith is averaging 34.7 points on 58.3 percent shooting in his last three games. ... Knicks C Tyson Chandler (neck) sat out his ninth consecutive game. ... Bobcats F Byron Mullens was a late scratch due to a sore left ankle.