EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Larry Brown returned to coaching last night in the final game of a dismal first season in New York, and the Knicks responded by avoiding their first 60-loss season with a 90-83 win over the Atlantic Division champion Nets.

Brown, who missed the previous three games with a stomach ailment, let Herb Williams do much of the work in the season finale at the Continental Airlines Arena.

Williams gave the team almost all of its instructions during timeouts and other breaks, while Brown stood behind his assistant.

Brown occasionally turned to Williams on the bench and offered advice, but the 65-year-old Hall of Fame coach seemed satisfied to simply be a presence as the Knicks (23-59) snapped a five-game losing streak and won for only the fourth time in 18 games.

The Nets (49-33) were an accommodating host for Brown, giving starters Jason Kidd, Vince Carter, and Nenad Krstic the night off, while playing Richard Jefferson only 18 minutes.

The Nets will open the playoffs at home against Indiana on Sunday at 1 p.m.The Pacers clinched the no. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference last night with an 89-83 win over Orlando.

Jamal Crawford led the Knicks with 23 points and 11 assists. Eddy Curry added 18 points and Nate Robinson added 15, including two late 3-pointers that put the game away.

Jacque Vaughn had 15 points and Jefferson 13 for the Nets, who made Williams and Brown sweat a little to avoid the record 60th loss by cutting a 19-point deficit to five in the fourth quarter.

Brown’s status for the game was kept a secret until just before the tip-off. He attended the morning shootaround in Greenburgh, N.Y., but Williams ran it. Brown arrived at the arena a couple of hours before the 7:30 p.m. start.

However, the Knicks never indicated whether Brown would coach. About 90 minutes before the game,Williams said he didn’t know whether he or Brown would coach.

Brown answered the question himself around 7:32 p.m., walking onto the court in a dark suit. He smiled and greeted Carter with a handshake and a hug.The crowd seemed oblivious when Brown was introduced as the coach a couple of minutes later, but that’s how this season has gone for the Knicks.

Brown and the Detroit Pistons parted ways after last season and he signed a five-year, $50 million contract to coach the Knicks.It has been an embarrassing season for New York, which has rarely played well as a team.

The 59 losses ties a Knicks’ singleseason record, the last time in 1985-86.

Brown’s all-time worst season as an NBA coach came in 1988-89, when the San Antonio Spurs posted a 21-61 record.

The highlight of the meaningless game was a spectacular alley-oop, fastbreak dunk by Robinson with 6:40 left in the third quarter. The NBA’s dunk champion caught a pass from Crawford and slammed it home, hanging on the rim for several seconds. It earned him a technical foul.

The win snapped the Nets’ six-game winning streak against the Knicks. It was only New York’s fourth win in 22 games against its cross-river rivals.