Eddy Curry was often the biggest cheerleader during crunch time last year.

Now, he's the center of everything for the Knicks.

"I wouldn't even see the fourth quarter, let alone the ball," Curry said. "But that was last year."

Curry scored 24 points -- 12 in the final period -- and Quentin Richardson had 27 points as the Knicks continued to play better on the road with a 101-98 victory over the Cavaliers on Wednesday night.

Stephon Marbury's numbers are down while he tries to figure out exactly what his new coach wants from him. Sound familiar?

After 15 games, one thing has become clear about the Knicks: Isiah Thomas is determined to be just as tough on Marbury as Larry Brown was.

"If there was any doubt in any player's mind, I'm sure that's clear and been cleared up, and I'll make sure I keep reinforcing what I want," Thomas said Monday. "And make no mistake about it, if I don't get exactly what I want, then there'll be consequences."

Channing Frye had struggled at times this season and he hopes the 3-6 weeks he will miss due to a severe ankle sprain will help his mental game.  In the previous three games, Frye was averaging 12.3 points and 6.6 rebounds, appearing to reclaim his confidence.

"I just have to use this as an opportunity to get better on the intellectual part of the game," Frye said in the locker room afterward.

Knicks forward Channing Frye will be out three to six weeks with a left ankle sprain, the team announced Saturday night.

Frye suffered the injury in the second period of Saturday's
106-95 home loss to the Bulls. He was attempting to block a shot by Chicago's P.J. Brown and landed on Brown's foot.

The New York Knicks received some good news of sorts, on a night where everything went wrong.

Losing both Quentin Richardson and Channing Frye to injury,  Richardson said his injury wasn't bad, and he was hoping to be back for Tuesday's game in Chicago. He is listed as day-to-day.

Frye's injury is more serious, though. The forward exited with 9:41 left in the second quarter after landing awkwardly on P.J. Brown's foot after Frye fouled him underneath. X-rays were negative.

"I knew it was pretty bad," Frye said. "Thankfully it's just a sprain."

Knicks coach Isiah Thomas and point guard Stephon Marbury's disagreement over the reason for Marbury's benching has become the biggest issue on a team full of them, the Newark Star-Ledger writes.

Marbury started last night but took not a single shot attempt and played just 19:20. He was benched for most of the second half, playing just 4:25, and did not play at all in the fourth quarter.

Why sit Marbury for the second time this week? Thomas claimed it was because Marbury had felt sick yesterday morning, and the coach was looking for more energy on the court last night.

"He didn't feel good this morning," Thomas said. "I just thought in a game like tonight where we needed some energy ... we tried it, didn't work, so I just went with the other guys."

But Marbury denied that he felt ill during the game.

"I had enough in me to play," said Marbury, whose sickness caused him to skip yesterday morning's shoot-around. "I wanted to play."

Marbury said outright that he was not happy with the benching. He said he was about to go onto the court at the start of the second half when Thomas pulled him back, with no explanation.

Channing Frye grimaced in pain and was helped off the court by his teammates when he sprained his right ankle during the second quarter of New York's loss to the Bulls.

Frye did not return to play, but X-rays were negative.

Quentin Richardson also left the game early with a strained hamstring.

Stephon Marbury and Kevin Garnett have not played together since 1999, and according to a report in the New York Daily News they do not seem to be longing for a reunion.

When asked about Marbury's return for last night's game between the Knicks and Timberwolves, Garnett asked to have the question repeated, then paused for a moment before issuing a terse response.

"It's nice to see Steph back in town," Garnett said without a smile. "I'm not going to front like I went to see him. I wish he and his family a Thanksgiving. My best to the Knicks. My focus is on getting some wins, and not on individuals."

From the way Marbury spoke, it was impossible to tell that the two were even teammates.

"It's always fun to play against Kevin," he said. "He's a very emotional player, he plays with his emotions, and it's always fun to go up against someone you share something with."

Stephon Marbury says 'Starbury' will be coming back to the Knicks line-up, with the blessing of Isiah Thomas.

"No, I haven't been playing like 'Starbury,'" he said with a laugh. "I was basically trying to play a certain style for the betterment of the team and put ourselves in a position where, when we went on the court, we had somebody that was trying to control and run the game the way it is supposed to be run. I think Isiah just wanted me to go out and play how I normally play."

The Timberwolves moved the ball around and gave Kevin Garnett all the scoring support he could ask for.

Getting some shots to fall for once, the Wolves used 21 points from Ricky Davis and put together their most complete performance of the season to beat the Knicks 107-89 on Wednesday night.

Steve Francis, replaced in the starting lineup by Jamal Crawford, came off the bench to score 19 points, but there was nothing to smile about afterward in a subdued New York locker room.

"We were bad all the way around," coach Isiah Thomas said, before cutting short his interview session.