Stephon Marbury had 26 points and a season-high 16 assists, and the Knicks used a 21-1 run in the fourth quarter to defeat the Warriors 115-99 last night.

Winning at home for the sixth straight time in the opener of a four game homestand, the Knicks had one of their best defensive stretches of the season in turning a tight game into a rout.

Tim Thomas scored 25 points, Michael Sweetney opened 9-for-9 and finished with 19 points, and Maurice Taylor shot 7-for-8 and scored 15. The Knicks shot a season-high 61.8%.

Jason Richardson scored 24 points and Troy Murphy added 23 for the Warriors, who had their two-game winning streak snapped. The game marked their fourth stop on an eight-game, 12-day road trip, and fatigue seemed to sap the Warriors’ energy down the stretch.

Coming off a 22-point loss at Orlando in which they surrendered layup after layup and allowed the Magic to score 38 first-quarter points, the Knicks held Golden State without a field goal for an extended stretch.

After Andris Biedrins dunked for a 93-92 lead with 7:24 remaining, Golden State did not make another field goal until Zarko Cabarkapa’s 3-pointer with 1:18 remaining. By then, the Knicks had expanded their lead to 113-94.

Marbury gave the Knicks the lead for good by converting a three-point play following an offensive rebound to make it 95-93 with 6:53 left. Taylor added a three-point play off another offensive rebound, this time when Tim Thomas missed a free throw that would have given him a three-point play, for a 100-93 lead.

New York remained tied for last place in the Atlantic Division, 5 1/2 games behind Boston. But if the Knicks (25-34) can string together a few quality wins before going on the road again (their next three games are at home against Washington, Seattle, and Miami), it’s not out of the realm of possibility for them to move up to eighth place in the conference. Philadelphia (29-30) currently holds that spot.

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CABLEVISION BOARD WILL MEET TODAY The board of directors of Cablevision, the Knicks’ corporate owner, is expected to meet today, and there has been some speculation that the Knicks might be put up for sale. James Dolan, chairman of Madison Square Garden and CEO of Cablevision, is engaged in a power struggle with his father, Charles Dolan, who appointed four new members to Cablevision’s board of directors last week.

[Midnight today is also the deadline for the resolution of Cablevision’s contract dispute with Time-Warner. Cablevision could pull Mets spring-training and Knicks telecasts for 2.4 million Time Warner subscribers if no deal is brokered. An extension is possible, according to several press reports.]