The arena was different, but the outcome was all too familiar.
The Knicks were again outclassed by the NBA-best Pistons in Thursday night’s 126-111 loss at Madison Square Garden, as Detroit completed a lopsided sweep of the regular-season series between championship hopefuls.
Facing the Pistons at home for the first time this season, the Knicks had no answer for do-it-all Detroit superstar Cade Cunningham, who dominated with 42 points, eight rebounds and 13 assists.
Cunningham scored double-digit points in each of the first three quarters, further solidifying his case for NBA MVP.
But Thursday’s loss was about more than Cunningham’s excellence.
The Knicks (35-21) failed to take advantage of an undermanned Pistons team (41-13) that was missing both of its primary centers — the All-Star Jalen Duren and the rim-protecting Isaiah Stewart — due to suspensions stemming from last week’s fight in Charlotte.
Detroit still outscored the Knicks in the paint, 58-56, and out-rebounded them, 44-38. Karl-Anthony Towns managed only two points on 1-of-3 shooting in the first half before getting going in the third quarter.
Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 33 points to go with six rebounds and seven assists, but that wasn’t enough on a night the Knicks shot just 8-of-35 (23%) from 3-point range.
The Knicks beat the Pistons in six games in last year’s first-round postseason series, but Detroit — then a young, physical team ahead of schedule in its rebuild — held its own. Three of the Knicks’ wins in that series were by three points or fewer.
Detroit has taken another big leap this year, now boasting a seven game-lead over the Knicks in the Eastern Conference standings.
“Experience matters,” Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said before Thursday’s game. “Having failed in the playoffs matters. You look at all the great teams, the teams that have found a way to sustain success, it never happened overnight for them. … It was a great learning lesson for our guys.”
Whatever the Pistons learned last postseason has certainly paid off.
The Pistons pulverized the Knicks in the teams’ first two meetings of the season, beating them by 31 and 38 points, both times in Detroit.
Thursday offered the Knicks a chance to make a statement as the regular season series shifted to the Garden for the first and only time.
“We want to win every game,” Knicks head coach Mike Brown said during his pregame press conference. “And they’re in front of us. And some people say, ‘You lost to them twice, this is an important game.’ If we go beat Detroit then lose the next night, it’s a wash. So for us, it’s extremely important because it’s the next game.”
The Knicks got off to a good start Thursday, as Brunson drilled a 3-pointer over Ausar Thompson on the opening possession.
But Cunningham took over soon after, scoring 11 points during an 18-6 run as Detroit pulled ahead. Cunningham finished with 14 points in the first quarter and took 24 into halftime, at which Detroit led, 58-48.
It was the opposite for Towns, whose first basket was a put-back dunk with 2:05 remaining in the second quarter — despite the Pistons’ absences at center.
Leaning on third-string center Paul Reed and Tolu Smith — a two-way player making his eighth NBA appearance — the Pistons scored 28 points in the paint in the first half, compared to the Knicks’ 30.
And the Knicks went just 1-of-16 on 3-point attempts in the first half, missing 15 in a row after Brunson’s game-opening basket.
Towns got going in the third quarter, scoring eight quick points, including a four-point play that snapped the Knicks’ drought from beyond the arc. Towns went on to score 12 points in the third, but it wasn’t enough for the Knicks to gain any ground.
Detroit led by as many as 19 points in the fourth quarter. A final Knicks push cut the deficit to 12, until Cunningham nailed a dagger 3-pointer with under five minutes remaining, putting Detroit up, 112-97.
A smattering of boos rained down at the final buzzer.
The Knicks are now tied with the Cleveland Cavaliers for third in the East.
Regular season matchups don’t necessarily serve as a predictor for the postseason. Last season, the Knicks went 1-3 against the Pistons and 0-4 against the Boston Celtics before beating both in the playoffs.
But now, after going 0-3 against the Pistons in this regular season, the Knicks will have to wait until the playoffs for another chance to defeat Detroit.
