The Detroit Pistons beat the New York Knicks in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series with a 100-94 win at Madison Square Garden.
With the win, the Pistons tie the series at 1-1 heading into Game 3 at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.
Cade Cunningham led the way with 33 points and 12 rebounds, bouncing back from a tough Game 1.
The Pistons did this without defensive anchor Isaiah Stewart, who was out with a knee injury. The Pistons now have more home games to work with than the Knicks as they steal home-court advantage.
Detroit also snaps its NBA-record 15-game playoff losing streak with the win.
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THE PREDICTIONS: Pistons vs Knicks score prediction: X-factor, key questions for Game 2
Pistons vs Knicks score updates in Game 2
Final: Pistons 100, Knicks 94
It’s over, but in a good way this time.
The Pistons snap their historic playoff losing streak, and more importantly tie up the series with a Game 2 win.
4Q 0:08: Pistons 98, Knicks 94
A Brunson jump shot and some foul-baiting beyond the arc (plus two free throws) made it a two-point game for the Knicks with 1:48 left. A critical turnover from Duren erased the bucket he made on the previous possession, while Josh Hart took tied the game with a dunk of his own.
Who to the rescue? Schröder, of course, with a 3-pointer and a key free throw to regain the lead.
4Q: 3:24: Pistons 92, Knicks 87
Both teams have had a difficult shooting night, but one key difference has been at the free-throw line.
The Knicks are 13-of-15 from the line, whereas the Pistons are 25-of-30. Cunningham has made 10 of those himself, and he may be called upon to make a lot more as the Pistons try to protect their close lead.
4Q 4:27: Pistons 90, Knicks 85
The Pistons defense has played a pretty clean game, with the exception of Thompson, who fouled out with under six minutes left in the game.
The Knicks immediately took advantage, with Brunson making two free throws and a floater with Thompson off the floor, cutting the Pistons lead to six. Brunson headed to the locker room with an undisclosed ailment soon after, however, which might give the Pistons defense a break.
Detroit played more than two scoreless minutes as the Knicks clawed back with the free throws they weren’t getting in the first half. A 10-2 Knicks run makes this a two-possession game with a little over four minutes left.
4Q 6:55: Pistons 88, Knicks 75
It’s probably a good time to highlight Schröder, who has scored 14 points off the bench, trailing only Cunningham (31) and Harris (15). He made a wild 3-pointer that snapped a streak of 12-straight missed threes for the Pistons, while also adding a team-high three assists and pulling in two rebounds.
The Pistons would love some more offense outside of Cunningham, Schröder and Harris, however, as they’ve gotten very little from Tim Hardaway Jr. and Ausar Thompson on the offensive end. Could it come from Paul Reed? He has six points so far, including a huge tip-in with just over seven minutes to play.
This was around the time Detroit’s fortunes started to reverse course in Game 1. The Pistons definitely look more composed at this point than they did on Saturday, however, and look to close out what could be a historic win.
End of 3Q: Pistons 75, Knicks 67
Just as they did at the end of the second quarter, the Knicks chipped away at the Pistons lead towards the end of the third.
But despite the Pistons shooting woes, they’ve more than made up for it on the defensive end, once again holding the Knicks to a sub-20-point quarter.
Cunningham likely won’t reach the triple-double he got earlier in the year at Madison Square Garden, but he’s on track to eclipsing his two 36-point games against the Knicks this season, finishing the quarter with 29.
Considering how well the Knicks played down the stretch in Game 1, it’s hard to call this Pistons lead comfortable. But if they play as they have through the first three quarters, the Pistons may come home achieving their goal: stealing one game on the road and grabbing home-court advantage.
3Q 5:44: Pistons 66, Knicks 53
The game so far has been missing a scintillating highlight, but Cunningham just provided one:
3Q 6:33: Pistons 64, Knicks 53
The Knicks have shown that they have the talent to overcome their underwhelming first-half performance, with Brunson and Towns keeping up their end of the bargain. Mikal Bridges is also playing a complete game on both ends of the floor to keep the Knicks within striking distance as they were entering the fourth quarter on Saturday.
But the best player on the floor tonight has been Cunningham, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that the Pistons continue to lead with their leading scorer playing so well. The Pistons will have to find offense from elsewhere, however, having scored only six points from the field so far in the quarter. But they’ve also held the Knicks to just four points total in the quarter, which might make Detroit’s shooting struggles a non-factor down the stretch.
Halftime: Pistons 55, Knicks 49
The Pistons still have a lead, but the Knicks are showing signs of life.
Cunningham leads all scorers with 20 points in the half, but Brunson isn’t far behind him with 17 of his own. The Knicks finally broke through on the free-throw line, with Brunson making two in the final minute of the half, but in large part to that discipline, the Pistons are on pace to hold the Knicks to fewer than 100 points.
2Q 2:55: Pistons 48, Knicks 40
Brunson leads all scorers with 13 points, shooting 5-of-9 from the field with three 3-pointers. Towns has 10 points of his own, shooting 5-of-8 and adding solid defense on the other end. And the Pistons still have a comfortable lead.
A lot of that comes from the Pistons defensive effort on the rest of the Knicks starters. Anunoby, who was the Knicks leading scorer through the first two quarters of Game 1, has just two made buckets so far. Josh Hart, while connecting on four assists, has only three points. Meanwhile, the Knicks still haven’t attempted a free throw.
Cunningham’s refreshed offensive performance is pacing the Pistons so far, as he leads all scorers with 17 points in the half so far. Maybe more encouraging for the Pistons, most of Cunningham’s points have come while driving, as the Motor Cade has officially arrived in New York.
2Q 6:36: Pistons 42, Knicks 32
Beasley’s first 3-pointer of the game gave the Pistons their first 10-point lead of the evening. Getting instant offense from Beasley and point guard Dennis Schröder (with seven points in the quarter so far) could play a key role for the Pistons while Cunningham and Duren get their needed rest on the bench.
Meanwhile, the stifling Pistons defense continues to play a clean game, not allowing a free-throw attempt so far for a Knicks team not afraid to initiate contact. Brunson shooting well and Towns hunting mismatches has kept the Knicks in the game, but the Pistons have done well in responding to every Knicks run with runs of their own.
End 1Q: Pistons 25, Knicks 18
What a difference a quarter makes.
Both Duren and Cunningham were asked to step up in Game 2, and so far they’ve answered the call. Even without significant shooting contributions from Harris and Malik Beasley, the Pistons take a seven-point lead over the Knicks heading into the second quarter.
Maybe more impressive than the Pistons offense is their perimeter defense. The Knicks shot 40.9% from the field in the first quarter, going 0-for-8 from 3-point territory while scoring fewer than 20 points. And remember, this is a team that scored 40 in the fourth against the Pistons on Saturday.
Let’s see if the Pistons can maintain this defensive pressure for the rest of the half.
1Q 1:39: Pistons 21, Knicks 18
Two buckets from Cunningham coming out of the break gave the Pistons a 3-point lead, their biggest lead since starting the game with a 4-0 advantage. Cunningham has played more aggressively in Game 2 than he did at the start of Game 1 despite the defensive pressure, now leading all scorers with eight points.
Cunningham also drew a blocking foul on Brunson entering the break, but the Knicks successfully challenged the call to keep Cunningham off the free-throw line.
1Q 4:49: Knicks 16, Pistons 15
The Pistons started with swarming energy, forcing bad 3-point shots from Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby on the first two Knicks possessions while opening the scoring with a big putback dunk from Duren.
So far the Pistons have been sticking with their inside game, taking just two 3-point shots with the Knicks taking five (and missing all of them). However, second-chance opportunities have helped the Knicks keep the lead, with the Knicks defense playing Cunningham especially tough.
Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns leads all scorers with six points, while Cunningham, Duren and Ausar Thompson each have four for Detroit.
Pistons could use a recharged Cunningham
Tobias Harris was the Pistons leading scorer in Game 1, which by itself isn’t a problem. But it could be if the team’s leading regular-season scorer Cade Cunningham isn’t playing up to his averages.
That’s what happened in Game 1, and the Pistons offense suffered as a result. Cunningham, who was recently named a finalist for
, fell below his season average in scoring (26.1 points) and rebounds (6.1) with a 21-point, six-rebound showing in his first-ever playoff game.
He still distributed the ball effectively, however. His 12 assists led all players in Game 1 as he found ways to create offense even when his shots weren’t falling. But the Pistons would probably like his scoring (30.8 ppg vs. the Knicks this season) to reach that level in Game 2, as well.
Bickerstaff on lessons from Game 1
Speaking to the press on Sunday, Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff acknowledged his
young team’s learning experience from their Game 1 loss on Saturday:
“It’s a mentality of, ‘if you don’t win this game, or these games, your season’s over with,” he said. “I thought the Knicks did a great job in that fourth quarter of playing with a sense of urgency.”
He also spoke about wanting more from the team’s third-year center Jalen Duren, who may be asked to play a greater role in Game 2 with Stewart ruled out:
“I expect more, and I know he’ll give us more, because he has all year,” he said. “But in these moments you have to be able to exceed what you think you’ve already done or may be even capable of.”
Duren scored seven points, pulled in six rebounds and blocked three shots against the Knicks in Game 1, falling short of his season average in both points (11.8) and rebounds (10.3) per game.
Isaiah Stewart injury update
Forward Isaiah Stewart will not be playing for the Pistons tonight in Game 2 against the Knicks.
Stewart left Game 1 in the fourth quarter with a little over nine minutes to play, hobbling off the floor with a right knee injury that had been bothering him since the final few games of the regular season. He was previously listed as “questionable” entering Game 2 before being officially ruled out a couple hours before tipoff.
The Pistons held a 98-92 lead over the Knicks in Game 1 when Stewart left the game. The Knicks then scored 19 straight points with Stewart out as part of a 21-0 run that sealed the game for the home side.
Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff praised Stewart’s defensive contributions on Sunday and mapped out how the team will have to rally without him:
“When he’s not on the floor for us, we all have to bring that. We have to find a way because we can’t just lean on him all the time or expect it to just be him. We have to play with that same ferociousness and that effort that he does.”
What channel is Pistons vs Knicks on today?
- TV channel: TNT, truTV, FanDuel Sports Network Detroit, MSG Network.
- Streaming: Sling TV, HBO Max, Prime Video.
- Radio: WWJ-AM (950)
The Pistons and Knicks will play for a nationally televised audience on TNT. Fans in the Detroit market can also watch Game 2 on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit, featuring longtime Pistons TV announcers George Blaha and Greg Kelser on the call. Amazon’s Prime Video also lets you add FanDuel Sports Network to your package (with a free trial).
Sling TV has packages carrying TNT and Turner channels. You can also stream any TNT game if you have HBO Max or buy a FanDuel Sports Network Detroit package through Amazon Prime video.
Watch Pistons-Knicks on Sling TV
Pistons vs Knicks projected starting lineups
- Detroit: Cade Cunningham (PG), Tim Hardaway Jr. (SG), Ausar Thompson (SF), Tobias Harris (PF), Jalen Duren (C).
- New York: Jalen Brunson (PG), Josh Hart (SG), Mikal Bridges (SF), OG Anunoby (PF), Karl-Anthony Towns (C).
Pistons vs Knicks injury report
Knicks vs Pistons prediction
Omari Sankofa II, Detroit Free Press: They have the offensive firepower to beat the Knicks, but Saturday’s fourth quarter showed just how important Stewart’s presence is. They’ll hope he’s healthy for Game 3 back home. The pick: Knicks 120, Pistons 110.
Pistons vs Knicks betting odds for Game 1
Odds provided by BetMGM as of Monday afternoon:
- Spread: Knicks by 6½.
- Over/under: 221½.
- Moneyline: Knicks -275, Pistons +225.
- Series winner: Knicks -700, Pistons +500.
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