YEAH, BABY! Melo wears a smile as wide as Brooklyn after scoring two of his team-high 27 points last night en route to a Knick win at MSG. (REUTERS)
NBA superstar Carmelo Anthony hit center court in the Big Apple last night — whipping Melo-mad New Yorkers into a frenzy over the prospect of returning his hometown to basketball greatness.
The Brooklyn-born forward — who led the Knicks to a 114-108 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks — scored a game-high 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in his debut in orange and blue.
The packed house at Madison Square Garden — including celebs like comedian Chris Rock, actor Matthew Modine and rapper Rev. Run from Run-DMC — welcomed their new hero with standing ovations and chants of “Melll-o.”
“I wouldn’t care if Carmelo was from Iran,” Rock quipped from his courtside seats. “He’s really, really good. It’s an exciting night.”
Modine added, “It’s a new era here. It’s electric.”
Earlier, Anthony held up his brand-new No. 7 Knick jersey and a flashed a beaming smile during a press conference, providing a shot in the arm to the team’s long-suffering fans.
“I love this city, man, I love New York. I’m ready for it, all of it,” Anthony said.
“It takes a certain kind of person to deal with New York City and with me coming from here . . . I think it’s going to be easy.”
Anthony told a room brimming with several hundred reporters that he’s up to the task of helping reverse the team’s years of bad fortune.
“I know there are going to be challenges, but I’m willing to accept those challenges,” he said.
The Knicks — who haven’t made the playoffs since 2004 and who have suffered through a series of humiliating seasons — acquired Anthony from the Denver Nuggets Monday, completing a three-team swap that involved 13 players, three draft picks and $3 million in cash.
Anthony was preparing to leave Los Angeles after the NBA All-Star Game weekend when he got the news about the blockbuster deal.
“I feel like I’m dreaming right now,” he said. “It’s a dream come true for myself. I’m ready to get down to business.”
The four-time All-Star had to switch from the No. 15 he wore with the Nuggets because the Knicks have retired that number, worn by Hall of Famers Earl “The Pearl” Monroe and Dick McGuire.
Hours before last night’s game, the Garden was mobbed with fans yelling, “Melo!”
“I paid 250 bucks for these tickets,” said Ricardo Alvarez, 23, of The Bronx wearing a Walt Frazier jersey. “I want to be able to say I was here for Carmelo’s first game. This is history.”
His sentiments were echoed by Demarco Jackson, who hails from Anthony’s old Red Hook neighborhood.
“This is now the Anthony Era at the Garden,” said Jackson, 31. “He’s coming home to bring the city a ring. You can’t beat that.”
Lifelong Knick fan Barry Cloudowenher, 52, said he packed his wife and daughter into their car and drove five hours from upstate Ithaca yesterday to see the game.
“I want to see the Garden alive like it was in the 1970s and 1980s, when we were winning championships,” he said. “This is the biggest trade in the history of the Knicks.”
Cloudowenher said seats similar to the ones they were given by friends were selling for $5,000 each online by game time.
Even tourists got caught up in Melo madness.
Turgut Zenk, 38, of Turkey, said he was glad to be in town for the occasion.
“People in my country know Carmelo,” he said. “It’s exciting to be in New York for this.”
Reyes Albauelu, 28, from Seville, Spain, said she waited almost five hours to get a freshly minted Anthony jersey at Modell’s in Times Square — one of only two stores in town to carry the shirts — to wear to last night’s game.
“I’m a big Knicks fan and I love Melo,” she said. “I had to wait a long time for the jersey but it was worth the wait.”
Scalpers came out three hours before tipoff to try to take advantage of the skyrocketing demand for tickets.
“This reminds me of the old days, the old energy you used to feel before a big game. The Garden is the Garden again,” said one scalper named Jamal who was trying to fetch three times face value.
Jason Ertischek, 27, waited nearly five hours in line at Modell’s to score one of the coveted Anthony jerseys. He predicted the trade will make the Knicks a title contender.
“In a few years, it will be us and LeBron fighting it out,” he said.