Carmelo Anthony is fizzling fast.
The Knicks forward jumped out to a 5-for-7 shooting start in the first quarter yesterday at Madison Square Garden against the 76ers.
He then went 0-for-6 the rest of the way.
And he was benched for the entire fourth quarter, along with fellow star Amar’e Stoudemire.
This came on the heels of Friday’s game in Milwaukee, where Anthony roared out to a 4-for-4 start but proceeded to finish 3-for-13.
Anthony’s final stat line in the Knicks’ uninspiring 106-94 loss to the Sixers was a respectable 22 points, nine rebounds and three assists in three quarters, but he again had issues after starting out well.
The loss makes the Knicks 2-7 since he returned from groin and wrist injuries, with Anthony averaging 17.1 points and shooting 41 percent from the field in the nine-game stretch.
“We’ve just got to figure it out, one way or another. Something’s gotta happen,” Anthony said of the Knicks’ skid. “Playing out there is not fun. There’s no type of confidence out there when we get down. Just seemed like our whole energy just goes out the door.”
When yesterday’s fourth quarter began, the Knicks were down 89-73. Their lineup of Jeremy Lin, Iman Shumpert, Landry Fields, Steve Novak and Tyson Chandler (and later J.R. Smith) first let the deficit get to 21 points before cutting it to 14 with 7:02 to play. Mike D’Antoni, however, declined to re-insert Anthony or Stoudemire.
D’Antoni said it was due to Stoudemire and Anthony not being completely effective (i.e., the Knicks were losing big) and also the current unit was playing well.
Asked if he was angry he didn’t return, Anthony said, “No, because — I was fine. I guess he was saving me for [tonight’s] game and that was the mindset out there.”
Anthony also heard some boos, both during pregame introductions and at one point when he pulled up on a fast break and took a 3-pointer instead of passing to Fields by the hoop.
“By the time I saw him, if I had thrown the ball, it would have been a turnover,” Anthony said. “As far as boos go, I’m not concerned about that. I don’t worry about that.”
“He gets some unfair criticism because of his success that he’s had his entire career,” Chandler said. “You’re gonna live and fall by your stars, but I think it’s a lot on him because it’s a full team here. We’re gonna win and we’re gonna lose together and right now we’ve all got to play better, including myself.”
mark.hale@nypost.com