In a 90s types of slug fest, where points were at a premium, the road team came out on top. The New York Knicks escaped Detroit with a wild one-point win on Sunday afternoon, which puts them in the catbird seat with a 3-1 lead in their first-round playoff series with the Pistons.
The win, however, came after an extremely questionable no-call in the final seconds that sent Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff storming after the officials on the court at Little Caesars Arena while the Knicks players rejoiced and celebrated around them.
The Pistons had the ball down by a single point with 11.1 seconds left on the clock and were looking for a game-winning basket. The Pistons 4th-year star Cade Cunningham took a shot from the left elbow but was just off the mark. After a mad dash for the ball under the rim, the Pistons kicked it out to Tim Hardaway Jr. in the corner, who had just enough time to put up a shot before the buzzer sounded.
But, as Hardaway faked first, he drew a lot of contact from Knicks guard Josh Hart as he went up for the shot. Hardaway was knocked into a row of photographers on the baseline, and his shot completely missed the rim. But the official, who was standing right next to Hardaway and Hart, did not blow his whistle and call a foul.
So, the Knicks survived with the 94-93 win. A steamed Bickerstaff charged out onto the floor irate to give the officials a piece of his mind for not calling what he felt was an obvious foul, but they simply did not acknowledge him and walked off the court. Feeling triumphant and relieved, Knicks players continued to celebrate around them.
David Guthrie, the crew chief for the game, said afterward that the officials made a mistake.
Embed from Getty Images“After postgame review, we observed that Hart makes body contact that is more than marginal to Hardaway Jr. and a foul should have been called,” Guthrie said.
Had the foul been called, Hardaway would have gone to the charity strike for three free throws that could have given the Pistons the lead.
Instead, the Knicks held on to win after rallying from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter.
Jalen Brunson, who left the game briefly in the third quarter with what appeared to be a serious leg injury, led the Knicks with a game-high 32 points and 11 assists.
“Moments like that you have to take a breath and relax,” Brunson said.
Karl-Anthony Towns added 27 points and nine boards, including a turnaround fadeaway near the baseline with 1:29 left before connecting on a shot from about 27 feet. Hart finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Though they got the win, the Pistons crushed the Knicks on the glass by 16 and outscored them in the paint by 16 points.
“He has amazing touch,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “He shoots the ball like a guard, and he has unlimited range.”
Cunningham had 25 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds in the loss for Detroit. He is now just the second player in franchise history to have a playoff triple-double. The All-Star guard also made NBA history. He joins basketball royalty, joining Oscar Robertson as the only PGs to start their playoff career with 4 straight 20/10 games. Tobias Harris added 18 points and eight rebounds, and Hardaway had 14 points. He went just 4-of-13 from behind the arc.
“He has to carry us on the offensive end,” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “That’s a heavy burden on him, but he has come through so many times.”
Detroit was without Isaiah Stewart for a third straight game because of a knee injury and coach J.B. Bickerstaff said it would be difficult for the rugged center to return in the series.
There were a ton of sports figures to take in the matinee, such as Isiah Thomas, Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell, Chauncey Billups, Ben Wallace, Patrick Ewings, Jerod Goff and of course, Kicks super fan and film maker Spike Lee.
The Knicks now hold a 3-1 lead in the series. They will have a chance to close out the Pistons in Game 5 on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden.
