ATLANTA -- J.R. Smith gave the Knicks a lift in a rare start before Carmelo Anthony assumed his normal lead role against the Hawks. Anthony continued his success against Atlanta by scoring 25 points and New York regrouped after blowing a 17-point lead to beat the Hawks 95-91 on Wednesday night. It was an important win for the Knicks, who were coming off an ugly 120-89 loss to San Antonio on Sunday. "Oh, man, it was a great way to kind of get back on track," Anthony said. "Any time you can win on the road, thats always a big win." Anthony averaged 41 points against the Hawks in two games last season, bringing his career average against Atlanta to 26.9. Smith, last seasons Sixth Man of the Year, made his first start since March 9, 2012, at Milwaukee. He came off the bench in each of his 80 games last season. Smith was suspended the first five games this season for violating the NBAs anti-drug program. Coach Mike Woodson said before the game he started Smith instead of Pablo Prigioni to "see if we can get off to a better start." Smith did his part, making three of four 3-pointers in the opening period as the Knicks took a 29-24 lead. Prigioni started the second quarter and followed Smiths lead, sinking a 3-pointer to give the Knicks their first double-digit lead at 36-26. Smith finished with 12 points in only his second game of the season after off-season knee surgery. "I kind of went over my limit with him," Woodson said. "He played 32 minutes and I didnt want to go over 30. But its tough when youre trying to win games and youre turning to your trainer and asking how many minutes hes on the floor.... It makes it a little tough." The Knicks committed only six turnovers. The Hawks had 15, including four by rookie point guard Dennis Schroder in less than 9 minutes. New York outscored Atlanta 30-23 in the final period. "Much better effort than we put forth in that San Antonio game," Anthony said. "Im glad to see that we responded in that fashion and put that game behind us." The Knicks, relying on 3-pointers, led 47-30 in the second period and 55-45 at halftime. New York made only 5 of 25 shots from the field while being outscored 23-10 in the third period, leaving the Hawks with a 68-65 lead. "We took some quick shots," Anthony said. "I took some quick shots. We just had to settle down and get our composure back, get our momentum back and go from there." Anthony and the Knicks regained control after the Hawks led 78-72 early in the fourth quarter. Anthony made a free throw, driving layup and a 3-pointer to launch an 11-0 run that gave New York the lead. Andrea Bargnanis 3-pointer capped the run. Anthony made 9 of 25 shots from the field. "Hes a heck of a player," said Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer. "I feel like a lot of the night we made Carmelo work for his shots, but because hes a great player he was able to make some of those tough shots. At that big moment, they needed him to step up and he did. Its a credit to Carmelo." Bargnani had 20 points and 11 rebounds, and rookie Tim Hardaway Jr. had 14 points for New York. Jeff Teague led Atlanta with 25 points and eight assists. Al Horford had 23 points. Horford said the Hawks must learn to finish out games. "I feel good about our team," Horford said. "We just need to learn how to hold the leads and finish out these games. Weve let some of these slip away, so we need to be better in that regard." Teague said the Hawks are still coming together in Budenholzers first season. "We made mistakes," Teague said. "Were still a new group and were still trying to figure one another out. Were getting better every game. (The Knicks) have been together for a while." The Knicks made eight of their first 16 3-pointers. The Hawks missed their first nine 3s before Cartier Martin ended the drought late in the second period. NOTES: Hawks G Lou Williams has been cleared for full participation in practice as he continues to recover from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee on Jan. 18. ... Kyle Korver made two 3-pointers and has at least one 3 in 81 consecutive games, the second-longest streak in NBA history behind Dana Barros (89). ... New Yorks Metta World Peace had four points on his 34th birthday. ... Teague made 11 of 14 free throws. ... Martin had 13 points for Atlanta. Colorado Avalanche Jerseys . So true. It is one thing to create a winning football team, and another to keep it winning. Each and every week it changes. The NFL creates a unique interest of not who is "the best", but much more who is "the best this week". 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The NHL Play of the Year showdown kicks off with some slick moves going head-to-head with a combination of soft hands and endless patience.SPIELBERG, Austria -- Red Bulls hopes for a triumph on its home circuit were dampened Friday as Mercedes regained its dominance in Formula One, clearly setting the pace on the opening day of practice for the Austrian Grand Prix. With Daniel Ricciardos maiden victory in Canada two weeks ago, Red Bull ended a six-race winning streak by Mercedes but the Australian driver and his teammate Sebastian Vettel did not come close to matching their rivals speed on the Red Bull Ring. Lewis Hamilton beat teammate Nico Rosberg to the fastest time in the second practice. Hamilton completed his best lap on the 4.3-kilometre (2.7-mile) track in 1 minute, 9.542 seconds, topping Rosberg by 0.377. Ferraris Fernando Alonso was almost a second off the lead in third. Vettel came sixth, more than 1.4 seconds behind Hamilton, while Ricciardo posted the eighth fastest time. Mercedes also came 1-2 in the opening practice, with Rosberg beating Hamilton by 0.140. "Its so close between the two of us," Rosberg said about the fight with Hamilton for pole position. "Im hoping we will still have the edge on everybody else. That seems to be the case today." However, Hamilton said he wouldnt mind if Rosberg started in front of him on Sunday. "Hunting definitely brings out the better side," the 2008 F1 champion said. "When you are in front, you feel vulnerable and any mistake you make you are going to be caught." In the morning session, Ricciardo and Vettel came only 13th and 15th respectively. "We clearly did better in the afternoon," Vettel said. "We are not there where we want to be when it comes to speed ... but it will be warmer on Saturday and Sunday and I think that will bring us closer." In the first session, Vettel brought his car back to the garage undamaged following a spectacular incident in the final turn. He came off the track and spun twice on the grass before the car came to a standstill on the track again. "t;That wasnt planned of course," the four-time champion said.dddddddddddd "I went too wide and the wet grass was slippery." Ricciardo also spun on the same spot shortly afterward, prompting team boss Christian Horner to joke "they were just warming up the crowd." "We are trying to find out the limit, and both just came on the grass," said Horner, adding the track was still lacking grip during the first session. "There was also a little bit of rain in the air. Thankfully everything is fine." Rosberg quit his first practice after 19 laps with a minor problem to his hybrid engine, enabling his technicians to fix the problem in time for the afternoons session. The German, however, couldnt keep up with Hamilton this time and didnt hide his anger as he was unaware over engine tests his team was applying on his car toward the end of the second session. "I was suddenly losing power and asked over the radio what was happening," Rosberg said. "Only then they told me they had changed my engine settings." Rosberg leads Hamilton in the drivers standings by 140-118 points going into Sundays race, the first GP in Austria since 2003. Most of the 22 drivers knew the track only from computer simulation. Alonso is one of just four drivers who raced on the track before, alongside McLarens Jenson Button, Ferraris Kimi Raikkonen and Williams Felipe Massa. The track is one of the shortest on the F1 calendar and features fast straights and only nine turns. Weather conditions could become an issue in the race as strong winds in the second practice Friday caused several drivers problems, especially on the third and eighth turns. The second session was considerably faster than the first as temperatures went up and teams were able to test their so-called supersoft tires, which helped cut lap times by approximately 0.6 seconds. The third practice is scheduled for Saturday, followed by the qualifying. ' ' '