NEW YORK — Heat guard Dwyane Wade continued his dominance over the New York Knicks, pouring in 26 points in Miami’s 98-81 win Sunday at Madison Square Garden.
It marked the 40th consecutive game in which Wade scored in double figures against New York — his longest streak against any team in the league.
Forward Joe Johnson made his debut for Miami, scoring 12 points. Johnson signed with the Heat on Saturday after the Brooklyn Nets waived him.
Center Hassan Whiteside scored 16 points and pulled down 11 rebounds off the bench for Miami, which never trailed. Forward Luol Deng added 15 points.
Forward Carmelo Anthony paced the Knicks (25-36) with 25 points, while center Robin Lopez had 14 points and 14 rebounds. New York lost for the 10th time in 12 games.
A pair of baskets from Heat center Amar’e Stoudemire, a former Knicks All-Star, provided Miami an 88-73 cushion, its largest lead of the second half to that point.
A 10-2 Knicks run to close the third quarter cut the Heat’s lead to 69-65, but Miami responded by starting the fourth quarter with a 13-5 burst for an 82-70 edge with 8:02 to play. Whiteside was responsible for five of those points.
The Knicks were able to trim the Heat’s halftime lead to 44-39 with a 10-1 surge to finish the second quarter. Forward Lance Thomas drained two 3-pointers in the run.
Miami (33-26) opened the second quarter on a 14-2 run to advance its lead to 37-21. Deng scored six points in the sequence.
Wade and Dragic combined for 12 points to help the Heat take a 23-19 lead at the end of the first quarter.
NOTES: Miami F Chris Bosh missed his sixth consecutive game due to a recurring medical condition surrounding a blood clot that forced him to miss the final 30 games last season. … Knicks F Arron Afflalo is out with a strained calf. … With the addition of F Joe Johnson, the Heat have an NBA-leading 38 career All-Star selections. G Dwyane Wade leads with 12. … Miami F Josh McRoberts turned 29 on Sunday.