Pistons can’t overcome horrible first quarter in 30-point loss to Knicks

On November 2, 2024By Littum

Detroit – If the Detroit Pistons took a step forward with their ongoing development Wednesday night against the Philadelphia 76ers, the team took several steps in the wrong direction Friday. The Pistons put together their worst early-season performance in a 128-98 loss to the New York Knicks at Little Caesars Arena.

With the loss, the Pistons fell to 1-5 on the season and extended their losing streak against the Knicks to 16 games. Detroit’s last win over New York was in the 2019-20 season. In Philadelphia, coach JB Bickerstaff believed his team had turned the corner in terms of turnovers. Unfortunately, it took a game for the Pistons to return to their games.

“That was our level of competition, there’s no doubt about it,” Bickerstaff said. “We didn’t approach the game in a mature way tonight. For us, again, all these things are things that we continue to learn and sometimes you have to get your (expletive) kick to learn the hard way .”

The Pistons recorded seven giveaways during the first quarter, contributing to an early 12-point deficit with 6:03 left in the period. There was a moment when four of Detroit’s six offensive possessions resulted in a turnover. By the end of the quarter, the Pistons had recorded seven.

They finished the game with a season-high 22 turnovers, leading to 30 points for the Knicks. In addition to their turnover woes, Detroit couldn’t buy a basket and shot an abysmal 6-of-21 from the field.

The Knicks made the Pistons pay for each of their mistakes. They began the night shooting 62.5% from the field. Jalen Brunson led the way for the Knicks, scoring 15 of his season-high 36 points in the period. He finished the night shooting 14-of-22 from the field with six made triples.

BOX SCORE: Knicks 128, Pistons 98

“He just knows the ins and outs of the game,” Cade Cunningham said. “He knows how to get to a spot. He’s physical. He can knock down shots at a high level. All those things make him a really tough guard. It takes a group to guard him and we just didn’t execute our game plan.”

The Pistons had a solid offensive performance in the second quarter. They outshot the Knicks 33-30 and connected on 66.7% of their shots, with Cunningham leading the way with 10 points.

However, Detroit’s second-period play wasn’t enough to overcome its subpar performance over the first 12 minutes. The Pistons trailed the Knicks 69-46 at the half. Cunningham finished the game with a team-high 22 points on 10-of-17 shooting, six rebounds and six assists.

“It was a really bad start from the first group, more than anything,” Cunningham said. “Going back to our home fans, we have to set the tone early. It’s a really good team. The main thing is just to be a better first team, set a tone and bring some energy.”

Karl-Anthony Towns, who entered the game questionable with a left wrist injury, added 21 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists in the win. OG Anunoby added 21 points, six assists and four rebounds.

After recording his first double-double of the season in a win against the Sixers, Tobias Harris finished with 13 points and eight rebounds, while Jaden Ivey added 10 points and five rebounds in the loss. Simone Fontecchio gave the Pistons a minor boost off the bench. He scored a season-high 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting and four rebounds.

The Pistons will play their second set of back-to-backs this season, starting Sunday afternoon, in a road game against the Brooklyn Nets. They then return to Little Caesars Arena on Monday to face LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers. Tipoff between the Pistons and Nets is scheduled for 3:30 p.m

Observations vs. Knicks

Bickerstaff may have found a new five-man lineup

Bickerstaff said he was trying to find something that would give the Pistons some “juice” after their hideous first-quarter performance. His desperation led to a shakeup in his rotation early in the second period when he went to a new unit with Marcus Sasser, who recorded DNPs over the previous three games.

The lineup of Fontecchio, Sasser, Malik Beasley, Ron Holland and Isaiah Stewart ignited a 15-8 run that significantly contributed to the Pistons scoring 33 points during the second quarter. Bickerstaff has repeatedly stated that one of his goals at the start of the season is to find more top five lineups, and he may have discovered a new one against the Knicks.

Sasser finished the game with a team-high plus/minus of +12. Of 10 players who played 16 minutes or more, Sasser is the only one to finish in the positives.

What a block party

The Pistons’ sub-par offensive performance overshadowed anything positive against the Knicks. The Pistons had arguably the quietest block party in franchise history, ending the game with nine. Tobias Harris led the way with a team-high three blocks, while Isaiah Stewart and Paul Reed added two off the bench, respectively.

A deeper look into a terrible first quarter

The Knicks outscored the Pistons 39-13 in the first quarter. However, they only outscored Detroit by five the rest of the game. The Pistons’ poor performance during the first frame marked the league’s third-fewest points in a quarter so far this season.

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Observations vs. Knicks