New York ? The New York Knicks did not want to dwell on their fourth-quarter collapse, preferring instead to point to the bottom line – a much-needed victory.

Latrell Sprewell returned to the starting lineup and scored 23 points, helping New York defeat the Detroit Pistons 94-91 Monday night despite nearly blowing a 32-point lead.

Allan Houston also scored 23 for the Knicks, who won for the second time this season – but just barely.

Detroit trailed by 22 when the fourth quarter began but pulled within one with 9.6 seconds left. Sprewell hit a pair of free throws with 4.7 seconds to go, and Ben Wallace threw away the ensuing inbounds pass to deprive Detroit of a chance to tie.

“There’s no such thing as a discouraging win,” Houston said. “It’s a good win for us no matter how it happened. Nobody plays a perfect game.”

The Knicks certainly didn’t, shooting just 2-for-18 in the fourth quarter when they were outscored 31-12. One of New York’s two field goals came when Wallace inadvertently tipped in a missed shot.

Wallace grabbed 19 of his 21 rebounds in the second half, thriving on the boards as the Knicks suddenly found themselves unable to make a shot.

“We just had a mental breakdown,” coach Don Chaney said. “We were playing not to lose, as opposed to playing to win. When you do that, you do things differently. You lose your mental poise. We’ll grow out of it.”

Improving to 2-8, the Knicks avoided having the worst record after 10 games in franchise history.

Richard Hamilton scored 31, Cliff Robinson 19 and Chucky Atkins 14 for the Pistons, who lost starting point guard Chauncey Billups to an ankle injury.

New York made 14 of its first 18 shots, a spree that ended with Howard Eisley’s 3-pointer for a 34-18 lead. New York shot 76 percent in the quarter despite getting very little from Sprewell – three points and two assists in 8 minutes.

Detroit's Chauncey Billups rests on the court. Billups suffered an ankle injury in the Pistons' 94-91 loss to the Knicks on Monday in New York.

Chaney said he decided early in the morning to move Sprewell into the starting lineup in place of Shandon Anderson.

“I just felt we need a win real bad. With him starting, we should get out to a jump start – which we need. I’d rather do it now than later,” Chaney said.

Billups went down late in the first quarter when he collided with Eisley. Atkins played the remainder of the game for Detroit, logging a season-high 41 minutes. Billups sustained a serious ankle sprain and is not expected to play Wednesday night against Miami, coach Rick Carlisle said.

The Knicks exploited their matchups with the 5-foot-11 Atkins in the second quarter, posting him up with taller players to create easy baskets. Eisley assisted on three straight baskets in a 10-0 run that made it 48-22, and the lead reached 32 on a 3-pointer by Sprewell with 1:35 left before halftime.

Detroit made its charge in the fourth with a 16-2 run that ended with Hamilton catching an inbounds pass and going in from the foul line for an uncontested dunk with 24 seconds left, making it 91-89.

Detroit nearly forced an 8-second violation before Sprewell made one of two from the line with 12.5 left, and Hamilton again got free for a dunk off the inbounds pass to make it a one-point game with 9.6 remaining.

It took the Pistons 5 seconds to foul Sprewell, and he made both foul shots. Wallace then attempted a baseball pass into traffic, and the ball was deflected away at midcourt.

“We were trying to get it to Chucky. In 4 1/2 seconds he can scoot downcourt and either get a shot or get somebody a shot,” Carlisle said. “That was my error and certainly not Ben’s. He played like a man all night long.”

Nets 99, Nuggets 79

East Rutherford, N.J. – Jason Kidd hit five straight shots and scored 13 of his 24 points in the first quarter to lead New Jersey against woeful Denver. Kenyon Martin and Kerry Kittles added 15 points apiece and the Nets forced 28 turnovers in handing the Nuggets their fourth straight loss. New Jersey led by 15 after the first quarter, 26 at the half and 35 after three periods.

Hawks 117, Raptors 92

Atlanta – Shareef Abdur-Rahim scored 27 points and Atlanta routed Toronto after building a 29-point lead at halftime. Abdur-Rahim scored 15 points in the opening quarter and watched the final period from the bench as the Hawks got some lesser-used players on the court. He has averaged 28 points during the past four games, the last three being Atlanta victories.

Spurs 104, Cavaliers 78

San Antonio – Tim Duncan scored 25 points to lead San Antonio against Cleveland, the Cavaliers’ seventh straight loss. San Antonio, which beat Cleveland for the second time in three days, had five players in double figures. Stephen Jackson added 18 points, while Steve Smith and Kevin Willis scored 12 apiece. The Spurs stretched the advantage to as many as 28 points in the fourth quarter.

Clippers 99, Warriors 89

Oakland, Calif.- Michael Olowokandi had 24 points and 12 rebounds, and Elton Brand scored 17 points as Los Angeles snapped a three-game losing streak. Olowokandi scored 20 points after halftime as the Clippers easily held off the inept Warriors, who regressed dramatically from the form they showed in a 135-92 win against Orlando on Saturday.