Knicks rally again but can't complete comeback this time, fall to Pistons in Game 2

The thing about playing an inexperienced team in the playoffs is that with every game they play they gain experience.

The Knicks handed the Detroit Pistons a hard-earned lesson in Game 1 of the best-of-seven playoff series Saturday night, staging a dominating fourth-quarter comeback as the neophyte squad fell apart under the crushing weight of the Knicks playoff-tested squad and the vibrations of the crowd at Madison Square Garden.

The situation was the same one the Knicks found themselves in Monday night in Game 2, trailing by eight points entering the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons. It even included Jalen Brunson heading down the tunnel in the fourth quarter, causing the crowd to collectively hold its breath, before returning shortly after that.

But playing with fire every night against the young Pistons squad came back to bite them this time. Detroit survived another Knicks onslaught down the stretch to escape with a 100-94 win, tying the series at one game each as the series shifts to Detroit.

The Knicks had a bigger hole to dig out of in this one, trailing by 15 in the third quarter, but hanging around to pull even in the final minutes. But after the Knicks tied the score with 1:15 to play the Pistons didn’t panic. They put the ball in the hands of one of their veterans, Dennis Schroder, who calmly drained a three-point field goal to give the Pistons the lead for good.

Brunson led the Knicks again with 37 points, but with the game in the balance the Knicks gave the ball to Mikal Bridges. And Bridges, who entered the fourth quarter with 19 points, missed on a good look from the top of the key with 11 seconds left — he was 0-for-4 in the fourth quarter — and the Pistons closed it out from the line.

“It was straight,” Bridges said. “I thought it was cash, but short. . . . You want to win the game. You want to make that shot. . . . But ain’t nothing I can do about it. Got to get to get ready for the next one.”

“We’ve got confidence in him all the time,” Josh Hart said. “I don’t even know what he had or what he shot or whatever, but we had two good looks. JB had a walk-up three, ‘Kal had an open three. We’re living with that. ‘Kal’s a guy that puts the work in so we’re comfortable and confident with him taking that shot and we’ll live with the result. I’m rocking with him until the end. When he shot that I thought it was good. Sometimes the ball just doesn’t go in.”

Detroit was playing without their backup center, Isaiah Stewart, and the Knicks were unable to take advantage with Karl-Anthony Towns managing just 10 points and six rebounds. Towns didn’t score after the midpoint of the second quarter. Cade Cunningham shook off the shackles the Knicks placed on him in Game 1, scoring 33 points.

After trailing by 13 with just over seven minutes left, the Knicks began to chip away again. But Brunson fouled Duren under the basket and immediately headed back to the tunnel again — this time followed shortly by his father, Knicks assistant coach Rick Brunson.

Tobias Harris misfired on a three and as the teams headed the other way Cunningham pulled down Anunoby, sending him to the line. Anunoby made both with Brunson returning to the game in the middle of the two and the Knicks down just 90-86 with 4:27 remaining.

With the deficit at six, Bridges missed on a corner three and then on a reverse layup. But after Schroder missed an open three, Hart drained a pair from the line with 3:24 left and the gap was down to 92-88.

A 24-second violation by Detroit provided an opening again and Brunson drained a jumper to pull the Knicks within two for the first time since the first quarter. Anunoby stole the ball and Hart went in for a dunk to tie the score with 1:15 remaining.

But Schroder responded, burying a three with 55.7 seconds to play. Then Brunson missed on a three on the other end. The Knicks had one more chance, but Bridges missed on a three from the top of the key with 8.1 seconds to play.

“All of this for us is learning,” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “These moments for us as a group, myself, as a staff with this team, we haven't done this before. So any test, any challenges put in front of us is a great test and a great challenge for us.”

This game took on a different tone from the start as the Pistons continued their physical style of play, but without any consequences. The Knicks would not shoot a free throw until 17.4 seconds remained in the first half. Detroit already had 14 free throws to that point. The Pistons had a 34-19 edge in free throws on the night.

“There was physicality,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “I want to take a look at it. Obviously, huge discrepancy in free throws. Huge. So I got to take a look at that. I don’t understand how on one side, you’re talking about direct line drives, the guy’s getting fouled, it’s not called. And look I don’t give a crap how they call a game, as long as it’s consistent on both sides. If Cunningham's driving and there’s marginal contact and he’s getting to the line, then Jalen deserves to be getting to the line. It’s really that simple."

“I’ll let y’all examine that,” Hart said. “That was an interesting thing. Y’all can figure that one out.”

By Steve Popper

steve.popper@newsday.com@StevePopper

Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.