The Knicks snapped their 0-3 start with a 111-97 win over the Detroit Pistons at Madison Square Garden. Knicks guard Jalen Brunson compared his team’s approach to a baseball game he had seen from his locker during the World Series. “Just continue to hit singles,” Brunson said. “Just get on base and hit singles and focus on little things until we get our rhythm.”
The win eased the semipanic surrounding the defending NBA champions, at least for one night. Although it lacked style points, it reversed several trends that had hurt New York.
Breaking the Pistons’ Hold
The Pistons had dominated the Knicks in the regular season. Detroit won all three meetings last season by an average of 30 points. New York also struggled in the second half of games, being outscored by 26 points in the first three games this season.
The Knicks blitzed Detroit in the middle two quarters, outscoring the Pistons 63-25. For that stretch, they looked like the Knicks of the playoffs. Swingman Mikal Bridges also woke up, hitting four 3-pointers after failing to make any in the first three games. The victory handed the conference-leading Pistons their first loss of the season.
Towns Responds to a Challenge
Karl-Anthony Towns again played to his personal standard. Head coach Mike Brown challenged him at halftime to do a better job on Pistons center Paul Reed, who had taken on more consistent duty after All-Star center Jalen Duren was injured. Reed had been a constant presence early, as Detroit built a 15-point lead.
“I told him the truth, ‘KAT, the guy is killing us on the glass and if he’s getting a rebound, he’s putting it back up. If he catches it on the perimeter, guard him,'” Brown said. “And he did those things. I thought that shift in mindset was big for us in the second half.”
Towns finished with 27 points and 20 rebounds. It was the 14th time he has scored at least 25 points and grabbed 20 rebounds, and the fourth time he has done it in a Knicks uniform.
“I thought we did a good job of picking up our intensity and our physicality,” Towns said. “I said before the game for us to win this, we have to be the best version of ourselves and not worry about everything else that’s going on.”
Containing Cunningham
New York’s defense on Pistons All-NBA guard Cade Cunningham was a key factor. Cunningham scored 40 points in his last visit to Madison Square Garden last season and appeared headed for another big night. This time, he shot 4-of-14 after the first quarter.
The Knicks locked in on him. With no other credible scoring option for Detroit, New York steadily chipped away and built a sizable lead.
“Our guys realized, no I can’t react to them. I got to dictate to them what’s going to happen,” Brown said. “And do it with a smart level of physicality.”
Brunson went 5-for-18 from the field for 23 points, so he did not have a breakout game. He stayed aggressive and kept forcing the action. In the fourth quarter, he helped draw a foul on Pistons defensive ace Ausar Thompson, who fouled out as Detroit tried to mount a late charge.
Still a Work in Progress
Brown did not view one win as a turnaround. He acknowledged that the team still has growth ahead.
“Is it fixed? No. it ain’t fixed. Nothing’s really fixed. What tonight shows us is we’re more than capable if we put our minds to it, and that’s what we got to continue to try to build off of.”