KNICK NOTES

OAKLAND — They are “The Odd Couple” in so many ways, Latrell Sprewell and Allan Houston — the coach choker and the coach’s son.

In his first visit back to Detroit in 1996, Houston said he felt the same way as Spree did Saturday night in Oakland. Houston felt like he wanted to cuss out all those Pistons fans getting on him, too. He never did. It’s not Allan.

“I just didn’t show it,” Houston said. “I can understand why he reacted to the crowd that way.”

Houston’s 24 points helped make Sprewell’s Golden State homecoming triumphant. Houston’s first Detroit homecoming was a disaster as he scored four points in a blowout loss.

But these Knicks were not going to allow Sprewell to be a loser Saturday night. “The whole environment and atmosphere, we were sparked by it as well as Spree,” Houston said. “We fueled off of Spree and the environment gave us energy. I really think that’s what happened.”

There is a notion that Sprewell has just two friends on the team — Marcus Camby and third-string point guard Rick Brunson. Maybe those are the two he hangs out with, but the way the Knicks were fired up, it seemed to show how much they care about their controversial superstar.

One perfect illustration came in the fourth quarter when Golden State center Adonal Foyle laid a crushing block on Sprewell’s two-handed dunk attempt, sending Sprewell to the floor. It was ruled a foul. As Sprewell got up and went to the line and the crowd’s roar was deafening, all of his four teammates on the floor sidled up to him for a pat, slap and encouraging word.

“We got the win, definitely for Spree,” Camby said. “We wanted to come out and win it for him. We knew what he had to endure here.”

P.J. Carlesimo strolled to halfcourt to shake Jeff Van Gundy‘s hand before tip-off and strolled a step toward Sprewell, perhaps looking to shake hands. But he never caught Sprewell’s eye. They never spoke before, during or after the game. “There’s no obligation on his part to do that,” Carlesimo said. “If the opportunity was there, yeah, I would’ve been happy to shake hands. But he’s entitled to act any way he wants.” Said Sprewell “If he had sought me, I think I could’ve gotten past everything and said hello and good luck for the rest of the season. But that didn’t happen.” … Knicks finish trip tomorrow night vs. Clippers.