Carmelo Anthony bounced back and found his rhythm, scoring 37 points on one of his most efficient nights making 11 of 18 shots. Coming into the game, Anthony was struggling, only shooting 32.6% in their first two games. Despite those struggles, he got hot early in this game with 18 first half points. Carmelo had some motivation prior to this game, due to some comments that were made. Last May, Dudley called Melo the most overrated player in the NBA. When asked about the comment, Carmelo stated he didn’t take it personal but he definitely had this game circled on his calendar.
“I mean it becomes competitive at that point, you just want to go out there and show what you are made out of,” Anthony said when asked about the technicals and Dudley guarding him late. “Tonight is one of those nights. It had nothing really to do with him but this was a game that I circled on my calendar. I’ll see him three more times.”
Anthony definitely made the most of his chances tonight and shoved those words right down Dudley’s mouth. Although Melo says he didn’t take it personal, this is one match-up we may want to keep an eye on going forward.