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Carmelo Anthony makes the most of his return to the Garden

NEW YORK — The Portland Trail Blazers’ second bus was scheduled to depart Madison Square Garden at 10:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday night, but Carmelo Anthony sounded like a man who wanted to stay.

Anthony relished his return to 4 Pennsylvania Plaza — perhaps his final game in the building he once called home. He was showered with applause all evening long, and authored one more throwback performance for his adoring fans, scoring a season-high 26 points on 11-for-17 shooting to go along with seven rebounds in 31 minutes.

“The love was definitely felt tonight,” Anthony said after the reeling Blazers lost their fifth in a row, a 117-93 blowout at the hands of the New York Knicks.